Some scars never fade
by TheWhiteCrayon
Summary: Liza West and her daughter, Jade, appear to be very happy living in Los Angelos. But something from their past, or rather someone, has never stopped haunting them. When their worst nightmare comes true, and Jade gets kidnapped, Liza is forced to tell everybody the truth. But when all hope seems lost, how far will people go to save the ones they love?
1. ghosts of our fears

**_Some scars never fade_**

_Some scars will never fade. Some of them will always be ugly. Sometimes, they're not even a lesson from the past. They're just a reminder of what you've been through- and proof of the strength you still possess._

disclaimer: Seriously, I don't get this, the site is called FANFICTION is there really anybody out there dumb enough to actually think this was my own idea? Well, anyway, just to be sure, it's not my idea. I don't own the victorious character's.

**Chapter 1. **–Ghosts of our fears

_Bad dreams are ghosts of our fears and worries, haunting us while we sleep. _

_~Maria V. Snyder_

**Jade's POV**

I laid back my head, and closed my eyes, enjoying the pure silence. A lot of people didn't like the loneliness of being home alone, but I loved it. My mom wasn't going to be home for quite some time, which I didn't mind at all. I really needed the peace and quiet from time to time.

I couldn't have been more annoyed by the sound of the doorbell. For a moment I was considering not to open it, but then again, it was probably just the mailman or something. I sighed as I stood up, and went to the door.

This had better not take too long.

I couldn't believe my eyes when I opened the door. My first reaction was to slam the door in his face, but his hand was holding it against. I wanted to scream, but I didn't make a sound. After all these years he still had that effect on me. It was like I was nailed to the ground.

Why? Why was he here, what did he want? Don't act stupid; I knew perfectly well what he wanted. I had always known that. But how? How did he find me? It didn't matter. Nothing mattered anymore. He was here now. And I, was going to die.

I felt a shiver down my backbone as I heard his voice. "Hello Jade."

...

I was sitting in the car. Tied up, with a blindfold for my eyes. I didn't understand just why I hadn't fought him more. I, Jade West, hadn't done a single thing to stop my kidnapper from taking me. I just, let him.

Maybe because, it was no surprise. I had always known he would come back. I didn't know when, but I had always been sure he would. And I had always been sure there would be nothing at all I could do to stop him.

Mom always promised me she wouldn't let him. She would keep him away from me, protect me from him. But no matter how much I loved and trusted my mom, I hadn't believed her. She couldn't stop him before either.

This was just too much. Unreal. Unreal… What if this really wasn't happening? I hoped it was only a bad dream, like all the other ones I had had, about just this. Maybe I was in my bed right now, maybe I wasn't in danger at all. But something told me, that this time, it wasn't a dream. That this time, it was all for real, and I really was in danger.

Something told me, this nightmare was finally coming true.

**Okay, this is my very first fanfic! I hope there are some souls out there who are going to read this and, maybe, even enjoy it. ;)**


	2. little of each other

**Chapter 2. **–Little of each other

_We all take different paths in life, but no matter where we go, we take little of each other everywhere. _

_~Tim McGraw_

**Liza's POV**

I quickly looked at my watch as I walked to my car. Past twelve o'clock. And it was at least going to take me another half hour to get home. Pour Jade. She had assured me she didn't mind staying home alone, but I still didn't like it to leave her alone so late at night. Even if she was 17. She would always be my baby.

She hated it when I said that tough. I grinned as I thought of her. She was so different from me. And not only our looks. With her being such a dark-head, and me being a blondie, people where always surprised to hear she was my daughter.

But especially our personalities were so different. She was so brave, ready to fight the world. She was scary even, too some people. Why, I was afraid of my own shadow!

But not my Jade. She wasn't afraid of anything. Well, that is almost anything. Of course there was one exception. Dear God, I hated that man. Not because of everything he had done to me. But because he had hurt my daughter. Still hurts her. Every day of her life.

And for that, I would never forgive him.

…

"Honey, I'm home!" I yelled after I closed the door. No answer. Would she be asleep yet? Could be, it was almost one AM. I didn't have to worry about waking her tough. She would sleep through anything.

I walked up the stairs to her room, and carefully opened the door. It was dark in there, but I was pretty sure her bed was empty. I lifted the blankets, and I was right. No one. I went downstairs again, to check if she didn't fell asleep on the couch. But there was no one in the living room either.

I was beginning to worry a little bit. She wouldn't have left without leaving me a note, would she? I looked all over, but there didn't appear to be any message. I would call her. No worries. Nothing to worry about.

_Beep… Beep… Beep… _"C'mon Jade, answer the phone." I mumbled as tough she could hear me. _"__This is the voicemail of Jade West. Please leave a message…"_ I tried again. Again. "Jade honey, where are you?"

Beck. She would be at Beck's place. She got lonely, and went there. Simple as that. I just had to call Beck. It didn't even cross my mind that it was the middle of the night when I entered his number.


	3. worries

**Chapter 3. **-Worries

_What worries you, masters you._

_~Haddon W. Robinson_

**Beck's POV**

_Ring… Ring…_ Was that my alarm clock? No, couldn't be, it was the middle of the night. It took me a while to realize it was my phone that woke me up. What idiot would be calling at this time a night?

This had better be important. I checked my scream to see who was calling, and saw it was Jade. Woops, forget I said idiot.

"Hello, Beck here." I yawned. "Beck, this is Liza West, Jade's mom. Is Jade with you?" I sat up immediately. "No, she's not. Why, isn't she at home?" I said with a little worry in my voice. "No!" The voice on the other side nearly cracked. "I just came home, but she's not here!"

Okay, calm down. I wanted to tell her that, but I found that I needed to calm down just as much as she did. "I called her, but she won't answer the phone! What am I going to do now?" I took a deep breath. There was nothing wrong. "Okay, Mrs. West, calm down. Have you tried to call Cat yet?"

"No, but I will." She sobbed. "Right away." I sighed relieved. "Okay. She is probably just there, but would you call me back after you spoke to Cat, just to be sure?" She sobbed again. "I will. Thank you."

I wanted to relax. I wanted to believe Jade was at Cat's house, and everything was all right. But a part of me just couldn't. A part of me just knew that something was wrong.

I decided to get dressed. Maybe I would have to go somewhere tonight.


	4. stop thinking

**Chapter 4. **–Stop thinking

_Dear mind, please stop thinking so much at night, I need sleep._

_~Author unknown_

**Cat's POV **

"No Jason, leave me alone! Go to sleep!" I yelled at my brother. I loved him very much, but at times like this I would seriously doubt whether he was quite right in the head.

_Ring… Ring..._ Yay! My phone! It was Jade's number. "Hi Jade!" The person on the other side started to cry. It wasn't Jade tough. "What's wrong? Who are you?" I asked worriedly.

"Cat, its Liza, Jade's mom." She sobbed. "Why are you crying? Don't be sad!" I didn't like when people cried, it made me sad too. "Please stop crying!" Her voice became a little calmer. "Cat! It's okay! I was just calling to make sure if Jade's not with you, and she is not, is she?"

I looked around. "Well I don't see her." I said. "Thank you Cat." And with that she hung up on me. I was pretty sure Jade wasn't in my house. Why would she be? Jade hated sleepovers at my place, ever since I woke her up with a funny joke. What was the joke again? Doesn't matter.

Maybe Beck knew where she was, I should call him! Wait, what if he was asleep? I had better call first, and ask.

"Jason, no! Get out of my room!"


	5. fear of the unknown

**Chapter 5. **–Fear of the unknown

_We do not fear the unknown. We fear what we think we know about the unknown._

_~Teal Swan_

**Beck's POV**

The few minutes it took Mrs. West to call me back, felt like hours. It was probably just stupid that I worried so much. There wasn't really anything wrong. She got lonely, and went to see Cat. It was the most logical explanation. And yet something was off.

Jade getting lonely in the first place seemed extraordinary. She liked being alone. And if she would have had some kind of problem, she would have come to me.

Maybe, if it wasn't Jade who had a problem. Maybe it was Cat who had one, and called Jade to fix it. That wouldn't be the first time. But it still didn't seem right that Jade hadn't left some kind of message for her mother. Mrs. West would have found it if she had. Something terrible must have happened if she left that hasty.

…

_Ring…_ I picked up my phone after the first ring. "Hello?" "She's not there either, Beck! I don't know where else she can be!" She panicked. "Stay where you are, I'll be right there." I tried to stay calm. "I am going to call the police!" She was crying again. "Okay, you'll do that, I'll be at your house in five minutes." I hung up.

I knew it. I just knew it! I knew something was wrong, the minute I heard she wasn't at home. Jade isn't like that. She would never take off without leaving a message.

_Ring… Ring…_ It was Cat. First I wanted to ignore her, but then I realized Mrs. West had probably scared the daylights out of her by saying Jade was missing or something.

"Hi Cat." I tried to hide the worry in my voice as best as I could. "Hey Becky!" She sounded cheerfully enough tough. "Are you awake?" What? "Am I aw..? Cat, I'm…" No use. "Yes Cat, I'm awake." I sighed.

"O good! So am I!" Get to the point Cat. "So, Mrs. West just called me, and she asked if I knew where Jade was. But I didn't, so I thought maybe you…" I cut her off. "No I don't know where Jade is, Cat. Listen, it's going to be fine. I'm on my way to Mrs. West now, and we'll find her, okay?"

"Okay, but what am I going to do then?" She asked. "You are going back to sleep Cat." I told her. "There's nothing you can do now." She started to protest. "But I want to help!" After all these years, I knew exactly how to handle Cat. "You will be helping, by making sure you're rested tomorrow. What if Jade need's you then, and you're all sleepy?"

"All right then." She didn't seem too pleased with this answer, but I just didn't want to have to watch over her too. I couldn't use that right now. "I'll call you tomorrow, okay?" "Kaykay." She hung up.

What was I going to tell her if Jade wouldn't be back by tomorrow? Don't think like that, she'll be back. We would find her. We had to.


	6. the only choice

**Chapter 6. **–The only choice

_You never know how strong you really are, until being strong is the only choice you have. _

_~Author unknown_

**Tori's POV**

Boy, would I be glad when the paint in Trina's room would be dry. Then she would finally be able to return to her own room, instead of spending the nights in mine. I could not believe that an 18 year old girl could produce that much noise!

Did I snore like that too? No, couldn't be. Trina didn't seem to have any trouble sleeping. But, then again, I hadn't been able to sleep at all these last few nights, so who knows.

I heard somebody walking down the stairs. "Hey dad, can't sleep either, huh?" I asked when my dad walked in the kitchen. "Not really." He sighed. "Hey, what's wrong? Somebody committed a crime or something?" My dad being a policeman, it wasn't the first time he had to get up in the middle of the night to… well. To do police stuff, all right?

"No." He sighed again. "I'm not sure if I should tell you this." I had a bad feeling about this. Usually when my dad wasn't sure if he should tell me something that basically just meant he didn't want to hurt my feelings. Which meant that I wasn't going to like what he had to say.

"And I'm not sure if I want to hear it. But if it is something I need to know, we had better get this over with." I said. "You're right." He said. "It's about a friend of yours. Jade West" Jade? O no. What did she do now? "Was she arrested?" I asked worriedly.

"No, it's nothing like that." He assured me. "Then, what happened to her?" I whispered. Now he really had me worried. "She is missing." He said. "Missing?" I gasped. "But, but how is that possible?"

"I don't know what exactly happened" He started. "But her mother just called the police a few minutes ago. She said her daughter was still at home when she left, with no intentions of going anywhere. When she came back, Jade was gone, and nobody seems to know where she is."

I started to panic a little bit, but my dad reassured me. "Now there is probably a logical explanation for all of this." He told me. "We get phone calls like this every month, and 99% of the time we find these people within a day or so."

"What happens to the other 1%?" I felt a tear going down my cheek. My dad pulled me in a hug. "I promise you that I'll do everything possible to find Jade, all right? I promise!" I dried my cheeks. I didn't want to cry, I wanted to help Jade!

"I'm going over there now, I'll call you as soon as I can, okay?" I stopped him. "Wait! Please take me with you, I can help you!" I could read in his eyes that he wasn't convinced about that yet. "Please dad, I promise I won't be any trouble, I know I can help you!"

He put his arm over my shoulder. "Please? I just can't stay here and do nothing. She is my best friend." I whispered. "If you really think you can handle it…" He said. "O, I do! I know I can, dad!"

"All right, you can come with me, but you have to get dressed fast then." He said. I smiled. "I will dad, I'll be ready in two minutes!"

…

"No, I, I really can't think of any reason why she would have left. I can't think of any person she would have gone to either, to be honest." Mrs. West was holding up very strong. Her cheeks were wet, and covered in anticipated make up. But she didn't cry any more, and she answered all of dad's questions clearly.

"Is there any place at all, she likes to go to? Maybe to be alone?" Dad was writing all of Mrs. West's answers down. She remain quiet for a moment. "No. nothing I can think of. If she wants to be alone, she has her room. She goes for a walk or something, or visits friends at their places, but…"

Mrs. West looked so helpless. And she wasn't the only one. Beck was hiding his head in his hands. I laid my hand on his back, in a failed attempt to comfort him. I wanted to say something to him, but I just didn't know what to say.

"Okay Mrs. West, this may be a scary question, but I have to ask. Do you know anyone, who may want to hurt your daughter?" Both Beck and I stared at my dad as if he had just announced the end of the world. But Mrs. West didn't look surprised at all. As a matter of facts, she had never looked more serious.

She nodded slowly. "Her father."

**So, how about that turn of events? Kind of expected it already? Yeah? Thought so. **


	7. the end of all

**Chapter 7. **–The end of all

_Death is the wish of some, the relief of many, and the end of all. _

_~Lucius Annaeus Seneca _

**Jade's POV**

As the hours went by, I got more and more used to the darkness. The candle he had lighted, hadn't burned for long. And since it had been the only light in the room, and there were no windows, it was now completely dark in here.

Since he took my phone, I had no idea what time it was. If I had been here for as long as I thought I was, my mom was probably already home. Then she would know I was missing, and they would probably be searching me by now.

Not that it mattered. They weren't going to find me anyway. Even if mom did think of him, by the time she had everything figured out, it would be too late.

How much longer would it take? This waiting was so much worse than just knowing I was going to die. I had known that from the beginning. And by now, death seemed like a relief. Like the end of this horrible nightmare.


	8. a presentiment of the truth

**Chapter 8. **–A presentiment of the truth.

_Poetry is a presentiment of the truth._

_~Anna Kamienska _

**Liza's POV**

And at that moment, I was absolutely sure. It was him. He had taken my little girl away! "He came back." I whispered. "He said he would, but I… I…" I was looking for words but I just didn't know what to say.

"Your ex-husband?" Officer Vega asked. I nodded. "Why do you think he would hurt your daughter?" he asked. "I don't think so, I know so." My voice remained completely calm. "But why?" Was his logical response.

"He hates me." I said. "He feels I betrayed him by leaving. I hurt him, now he wants to hurt me. There's nothing worse he could do to me then…" I couldn't say it. I felt a tear running down my face. "And he knows that."

Officer Vega laid a comforting hand on my arm as he asked: "Has he ever threatened you or your daughter?" Just a moment ago I had been so calm, but now I could hardly see through my tears. "Yes" I whispered. I remembered everything. How could I ever forget?

_Flashback. _

_"__Don't think you'll get away with it, you bitch. I will find you, you can count on that. And when I do, I'll take everything from you. I'll destroy you, like you did to me. Don't think I'll spare her, just because she is my daughter. Don't forget she is your daughter too, Liza. And for that, she will die."_

_End flashback. _

I felt sick. "Can you tell me about it?" I took a deep breath. "He changed. So much. He wasn't like that at all, at first. But later…" This wasn't the point at all. "Jade, she… She just never could do anything right with him. He was always angry. We tried. We did, but..." Another tear streamed down my cheek. And another, and another.

"It became worse every day. We just, we couldn't live with him anymore. I decided to get a divorce, for Jade's sake. But it drove him mad. He had never been so angry. He said he'd destroy me, like I had done to him." My voice was shaking so bad, I wondered if he could still understand me. "He said he would kill Jade."

I couldn't stop myself from crying anymore. I didn't want to anymore either. I felt Tori's arms around me, and I laid my head on her shoulder. I heard Beck's voice, but I couldn't understand him. We needed to find my baby.

We had to.


	9. a dangerous place

**Chapter 9. **–A dangerous place

_The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing._

_~Albert Einstein_

**Beck's POV**

I couldn't believe my ears. I knew Jade didn't like to talk about her dad, and I knew things had been nasty when her parents had split up. And I thought that was why she didn't see him anymore. But this… Never had I expected this! It didn't matter. Right now, my girlfriend was in danger. And right now, we needed to find her.

"Well don't just stand there all of you! We have to find her! Didn't you hear it, she's in danger!" Was everybody insane or something? Why didn't they do something? "Do something!" I screamed through my tears.

Wait, was I crying? That wasn't going to help Jade! I needed to wipe the tears away. I needed to stop my hands from shaking. I needed...

Suddenly Mr. Vega grabbed me by my shoulders. "Beck, calm down!" he yelled. "We'll find her, son. We'll find her!" I collapsed in his arms. "Just calm down all right? Everything will be okay. We'll find her."

He let go. "Okay, Mrs. West, I need you to come to the office with me. I need to know everything about your ex-husband. This is a possibility we have to take in account." He announced the word possibility very loud and clearly, like things weren't at all sure.

"Please. Can we come too?" Tori asked. I was surprised at how calm she handled the whole situation. It was nice to have her here tough. She and Mr. Vega were both so helpful, so calm. So different from how Cat would have reacted if she was here. I was glad I didn't let her come.

"Yes, of course." I didn't expect Mr. Vega to say anything else. We all got up and went outside, to the police car.

Just then I realized I had left home in the middle of the night, without leaving a message for my parents. I would call my dad, and leave him a voicemail. Strange, how I could think of that at a moment like this.


	10. painful memories

**Chapter 10. **–Painful memories

_Painful memories didn't just ease back in –they shoved the door open. Hard, and all at once._

_~Harlan Coben_

**Jade's POV**

_Flashback. _

_"__You worthless little slut! I can't believe how stupid…" I felt a tear running down my cheek. I quickly wiped it away. I knew better than to show him. I tried to shield his screams. I was used to it, but the insults were still hurting as much as ever. _

_Suddenly he gave me a hard slap across the face. I was shocked. He had never hit me before. Only with words. At that moment my mom came in. She pulled me away from him, safely in to her arms. I felt another tear streaming down my cheek, but this time I didn't try to stop it. _

_"__Yeah, right! Go cry with your mother, you…" he didn't get a chance to finish his sentence. "Stop it!" my mother screamed. My mom never raised her voice. "For goodness sake, stop it!" She cried now, but yet she had never seemed so strong before. _

_"__What the hell Liza! What do think you're doing?" my dad shouted. "What do I think I'm doing? What do you think you're doing? What do you think you've been doing for the past years! Too slang my innocent daughter, day after day! And now beating her? For the love of God, she is your own child!" _

_"__Watch that tone, Liza." My mom ignored him. "But no more. Never again. Never!" Her arms were still safely around me as we walked past him, upstairs, too my room. We sat on my bed together for hours, waiting for the storm to pass. We heard glasses breaking, and my dad shouting. I held on to my mom tightly. _

_And suddenly we heard the front door closing. A loud bang echoed through the house. My mom stood up, and left the room. I followed her. "Mom! What are you going to do?" She wrapped her arms around me again. "I won't let him hurt you ever again. I promise." She said. "Now, how would you like to stay with granny for a while, huh?" _

_"__Will you go with me then?" I asked. "I will. Now, let's go pack, okay? Take everything you need, don't leave anything behind." She went to look for suitcases in the closet. "Won't we come back here mommy? I mean, not ever?" _

_She looked me in the eyes. "I don't think so honey." She whispered. And for the first time in a long while, I actually smiled. _

_End flashback. _

I had never seen him again after that day. Well, never until now. I had always known this day would come. He said he would find us, and I believed him. I didn't have to ask my mom what would happen if he did. I knew that, too.

I had had a good live, tough. I had my mom, the best and sweetest mother in the world. I had my friends, which I somehow loved very much. That crazy, lunatic Cat, who I just couldn't help but love. And, I guess, I also kind of liked Vega. She was annoying, but, I guess, so was I, sometimes.

And I had Beck. My dear, handsome, caring soulmate, Beck. Who I loved with all of my heart. But I just couldn't believe I would never see him again. I would never see any of those people again.

This was just such a cruel thing to do. If you would just kill someone, of course they would never see any of their loved ones again. But at least they didn't have to think about that, they were just… gone.

But this… Making me think this over, again, and again, and again. Making me miss the people I love, knowing I would never see them again. That was just sick.

I couldn't even say goodbye to them anymore.


	11. tired

**Chapter 11. **–Tired

_It's a kind of tired that sleep can't fix._

_~Author unknown_

**Beck's POV**

"For God's sake, it's been ages! What the hell are they doing in there?" I screamed. I couldn't take it anymore. I was tired, I was afraid, and I felt useless.

"Beck, calm down, it's hardly been fifteen minutes yet. You look exhausted. Now why don't you try to get some sleep? Just close your eyes for a few minutes, I really think you need it."

Not for the first time that night, it was Tori's calm voice of reason, which brought me back to earth. "You're right." I admitted. "But shouldn't you get some sleep too?" I asked her.

"Yeah, well. Maybe I will. But I'm really not that tired. I'll be all right." I nodded. It wasn't like it was even that late. But the stress had just worn me out. Already. I needed just a little bit of rest before I could be of any help for Jade.

I didn't think I would ever be able to fall asleep in this situation tough. But to my own surprise, it didn't take very long at all till tiredness got the best of me. And I sank away in a deep, troubled sleep.


	12. horrible memories

**Chapter 12. **–Horrible memories

_Why did happy memories fade and blur until one could scarcely recall them at all, while horrible memories seemed to retain their blinding clarity and painful sharpness?_

_~Judith Mcnaught _

**Tori's POV**

I rested my head in my hands. This was just such a mess. Mrs. West was losing her mind, I was losing my mind. And Beck was obviously losing his mind, too. And how were we all to blame for that? Jade was probably in danger, and nobody could do a thing about it.

We knew who was doing this to her. Who was doing this to us. But there was absolutely no prove for that. And besides from that, we didn't know where he was keeping her anyway. Heck, we didn't even know where he was!

I had seen my dad in situations just like this many times before. And most of those times, no matter how hopeless the case seemed, everything eventually got a happy ending. And I knew there was a very big chance this would be one of those cases, and soon, everything would be okay.

And I wanted to think about all of the good memories I had. All of the times that the bad guy was arrested, and everybody was safe again. And I wanted to believe that that was exactly what was going to happen now.

But somehow I just couldn't help but thinking about the few cases my dad had handled, that hadn't had a happy ending. I couldn't help but remembering my dad's anger and sadness, when they had been too late to save a victim.

And I just couldn't help but fearing that that was exactly what was going to happen now.


	13. losing you

**Chapter 13. **–Losing you

_My nightmares are usually about losing you._

_~Peeta Mellark _

**Becks POV**

_"Beck! Help me!" Jade! She sounded terrified. "Where are you?" I screamed helpless. I had to find her. I kept running through the dark, but I appeared to be all alone. "Jade! Where are you?" But she didn't answer anymore. She had to be here. And I would find her. I had to. _

_And suddenly, I saw her. My beautiful, perfect girlfriend. She looked lovelier than ever. I ran towards her. I needed to feel her in my arms again, I needed her to be safe. _

_But just before I reached her, he doomed up out of nowhere. I couldn't see his face, but I knew it was him. His hand was covering her mouth, and he was keeping a knife pressed against her throat. I was immediately nailed to the ground. _

_"Let her go!" I yelled. He only laughed. The sick bastard just laughed! I saw the fear in her eyes. I had to save her. But how? What could I possibly do? I felt so helpless. _

_He pressed the knife into her skin. I saw some blood running by her throat. I heard myself screaming, far away. He pressed harder. Her last scream was stifled by his hand. He killed her. I slowly disappeared, in to the deep, dark nothing. He killed her. _

I opened my eyes, and looked around. It was a dream. A stupid dream. I couldn't remember the last time I had been this relieved to wake up. A tear streamed down my cheek. If only Jade was okay.

Tori hadn't noticed I was awake yet. She was holding her head in her hands. I cleared my throat. She looked up, and I saw her eyes were red from crying. "Hey." She said, quickly wiping her cheeks.

"How come you're awake yet?" I shrugged my shoulders. I wasn't going to tell her about my nightmare. "Don't know. I just, woke up, I guess." She lifted her eyebrows, just like Jade always did when she didn't believe me.

I rubbed my eyes. I was still tired, but there was no way I was going to fall back asleep now. "Hey, do you have some coffee here?" I asked. She nodded, and stood up to get some, which didn't take long at all.

"Here you go." Tori handed me a cup of coffee. "Thanks, I needed that." She sat down. "Yeah so did I." We both took a big gulp. "I do wonder what's keeping them so long. How long has it been already?"

This waiting was hell. "It's been nearly half an hour. I don't think it'll take them much longer." And just at that moment they came in. There was another cop with them, but Mr. Vega didn't introduce him, he just sat down behind his desk.

"So, we found out who he is. That is, we know just about everything about him. We know where he lives, where he works. I'll send someone to his house, but if he's got anything to do with this, he's not going to be there. I'm pretty sure he will be smarter than that."

"Where does he live?" I asked. "San Diego." Mr. Vega said. "But that's here in California!" I shouted. He nodded. Mrs. West really seemed upset about this.

"All these years, I thought we were safe. I thought he had no idea where we were. We moved to the other side of the country, for God's sake! It's no coincidence that he followed us all the way here. He knew where we lived."

The other guy nodded. "He must have known for the past two years, maybe longer. That's how long he has lived there." That scared me. How long had that man been watching Jade? How long had he been planning this crime? And how much time was there left for us to save her?

Or were we too late, already?


	14. a useless feeling

**Chapter 14. **–A useless feeling

_Guilt is a useless feeling. It's never enough to make us change direction –only enough to make you useless._

_~Daniel Naverl_

**Liza's POV**

I still couldn't believe it. For the past two years, we had never been safe. We had been watched, by the man I feared the most. "This is all my fault!" I cried. "If only I had filed a claim when he first threatened to do this…"

Mr. Vega interrupted me. "Liza, you cannot blame yourself for this. It just isn't your fault." He announced the last sentence clearly. "But I could have known!" Tears were running down my face again.

Mr. Vega stood in front of me now, and he grabbed me by my shoulders. "Listen to me. This isn't anybody's fault. Only _if_ anyone has kidnapped Jade, that person is to blame. And nobody else." He announced the word 'if'.

"It's true you know." Beck stood up. "I mean, ever since I heard she was gone, I blamed myself for not checking on her. For not insisting more on coming anyway, after she told me not to. But it isn't my fault. And it's not your fault either."

I pulled him in a hug, and we both cried. We both cried for the same girl, who we both loved with all of our hearts.

…

We had been here for hours now, still not knowing anything. "What time is it?" I asked. "Almost six AM." Tori answered. That meant that it already had been four hours since I found out that my baby was gone.

"What's his name?" I didn't have to ask who Beck was talking about. "Ronald. Ronald Scott." It almost hurt to say his name. "When did you get divorced?"

Tori tapped him on his shoulder. "Beck! Maybe she doesn't want to talk about it." I smiled tatty. "That's okay Tori. I think you have a right to hear this." I took a deep breath.

"We got divorced five years ago. Jade was twelve then." I took another deep breath. "He had changed. So much. When I married him, he wasn't like that. Sure, he, he was always stubborn. He had always been a hothead. But I never…" My voice trailed off. It was hard to talk about it.

"He wasn't like… what?" Beck said carefully. "Like, angry all the time. Upset about nothing. Swearing, at me and Jade." I swallowed. Tori held my hand. Funny, how these two teenagers had given me more understanding, more compassion about this in one night, than any grown up had given me in years.

"Did he ever misuse her? Or you?" Beck whispered now. I nodded my head. "Well. That depends. On what you see is misusing. But I feel he did. Emotionally, anyway. After the first time he ever hit Jade, I left." I thought about the big bruise on her cheek, which had lasted for weeks. I remembered the terrible guilt I had felt. But even more, the anger.

"It started small. He was always hard on Jade. Mean even, sometimes. I didn't realize… well. It's really so stupid." My cheeks felt wet again. "But I just never saw how much worse it came every day. I saw my daughter's pain, but somehow I didn't see it had to stop!" I almost choked on my own words.

Tori pulled me in to a hug. "That's not stupid! I understand. Really, I do." I couldn't help but cry. I let all the fear, all the guilt, and all the pain come out. And I let her comfort me.

Suddenly, Officer Vega came in. "I need everybody in my office. Right now." He sounded really worried. We all got up, and quickly stepped in to his office. "We just had a phone call. Somebody claims he has your daughter."

A jolt went through my whole body. "It's him, isn't it?" I don't know how I managed to keep my voice so calm. "Well, he didn't say that, but… Let's just listen to the conversation."

_"__This is the police."_

_"__Hey, boys! I'm sure by now you've heard of this missing girl, Jade West?"_

_"__Who are you?"_

_"__Well, I think you know that already, don't you? Besides, I've got more important information to tell than that. Like, she's still alive. I'm sure her mother will be glad to hear that. And her cute little boyfriend, too." He laughed. "Won't be for long, tough."_

_"__Listen, you can still keep yourself out of prison! Just tell us where the girl is, and…"_

_"__Well how about, I don't tell you where she is, I'll have my revenge, and I'll keep myself out of prison?" He laughed again._

_"__We know who you are, and we will find you! Now be wise, and tell us where she is!"_

_"__Well, I wouldn't count on that. So, even if you will find me, my revenge is more important to me. I just wanted to get you out of this uncertainty. And now you know. I have kidnapped Jade, and she is going to die." He laughed out loud._

People started talking, but I didn't hear them anymore. The room started spinning, and suddenly everything went black.


	15. the burdens of another

**Chapter 15. **–The burdens of another

_No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens of another. _

_~Charles Dickens_

**Tori's POV**

"O my God." I was the first to talk after we had listened to the tape. My dad said something, but it didn't get through to me. Beck interrupted him. "Do something! We have to find her, now! She's going to die if we don't!"

"I guarantee you, we will try everything. But it won't be easy. You see, we can't retrace his phone because…" And that was where Mrs. West fainted.

Luckily, dad's colleague, Gary, stood next to her, and caught her in time. He and dad carried her to the little room with a bed, where the officers slept sometimes.

"He is going to kill her! And there's nothing we can do!" For the first time tonight, it was me who cracked. Beck walked over to me, and wrapped his arms around me. "No, he won't. We'll save her. We will. It'll be all right."

I quickly loosed myself from Beck when my dad walked in again. "Okay, so you can't retrace his phone." Beck started the conversation where it had ended. "But there must be something you can do to find him."

"Well, we are trying to. Right now, we've got people in San Diego. They'll check every place there where he could possible keep her, and we are going to do the same thing here. I'm sorry to say that right now, that's all we can do."

Beck only nodded. He looked so beaten. Probably kind of the way I must've looked. "I know it's a lot to ask, but right now there's really nothing you can do. So I think it's best if both of you went home, for now, and got some sleep. If there's anything, anything at all, I promise I'll call you right away."

Beck nodded again. "I think I got some explaining to do to my parents. And I promised I'd call Cat, too." But I didn't want to leave Mrs. West here all alone. Of course she had my dad, and Gary, but they were different. They were cops. My dad always said that, no matter how much they cared, it still wasn't the same thing as having someone there, especially for you.

"If it's all right, I'd rather stay here, and wait for Mrs. West to wake up." I said. "When she's awake, I'll take her home." "You sure you want to?" My dad asked. "I can do that too, if you want to go home."

"No, really, I want to. Having cops around you, isn't the same as having normal people around you. You always said so yourself." I wanted to smile, but my face didn't cooperate, so I think I pulled a very strange sight.

"Okay then, if you insist. Beck, can I have your phone number?"

…

Beck had left, and I was sitting next to Mrs. West, waiting for her to wake up. I was a little worried, tough. Was it normal she still hadn't woken up? It had been like ten minutes or so. At that moment my dad walked in with some coffee.

"Hey dear. Thought you could probably use this." I accepted the cup gratefully. "Dad, is it normal she's still not awake? It's been a while." My dad reassured me. "I don't think there's anything to worry about. She was just exhausted, from stress, worries, not sleeping. When she fainted, she just slept on, that's all."

"O." I took a zip from my coffee. "That also means she is probably going to be asleep for a couple of hours. Are you really sure about waiting for her?" My dad asked. "Yeah, if it takes too long I'll just sleep here, on the couch. But I don't want to leave her here alone."

"I think that's very sweet of you." I smiled at him. "Dad, can I ask you something?" He smiled back. "You always, dear." I took a very deep breath before asking my question. "Is there any hope for her?" My dad looked at me seriously. "There is always hope."

"Yeah, but, there isn't always a realistic hope. I want to know the truth, dad. If it was anybody else, someone we didn't know. Would you say there was any, realistic, hope then?" I wasn't at all sure if I wanted to know the answer to my own question.

"I would still say, where there is life, there is hope. And the last thing we've heard about her, is that she is still alive. So that means there is still hope. And then another thing. Most victims who get kidnapped, get killed within the first three hours. She has already survived longer than those first hours, which gives me hope."

My dad sighed. "Now, I'm not going to promise you she will survive. Because I just don't know that. I'm not even going to tell you that the chance she will survive is bigger as the chance that she won't. Because that's just not the truth either. But I won't let you give up on her. Because she is still alive now, and that means that right now, there still is hope. And you have to hold on to that."

I hugged my dad, and laid my head on his shoulder. "I'm just so afraid dad. I'm so scared." I swallowed back my tears. "I know dear. I know." My dad was rubbing my back. "But I mean what I said. You have to hold on to that hope. We can't ever give up. Not on somebody we love."

And I knew he was right. And even though I was afraid, I wouldn't give up. Because I loved Jade. And at that moment, I realized something very important. That saying, where there is life, there is hope, that wasn't true. O, of course there was some truth in it. But hope didn't disappear where life ended.

At that moment I realized that where there is love, there would always be hope.


	16. hold dear

**Chapter 16. **–Hold dear

_Hold dear to your parents for it is a scary and confusing world without them. _

_~Emily Dickinson_

**Beck's POV**

As I came home, it was almost six thirty. All I really wanted, was to be alone, and to finally get some sleep. But I knew my parents were probably awake by now, and they had a right to hear an explanation. And besides, I had to call Cat to. What in the name of God was I going to tell her?

Worries for later. First I had to talk to my parents. I was going to take everything one at the time, for now.

I walked in the door, and saw my ma at the kitchen table. "Hey ma." She looked terribly relieved. "Steven, he's home!" She yelled. She walked up to me. "Are you all right? Did you find Jade back? Why didn't you wake us when you left?"

Typical ma. She would ask all sorts of questions, but wouldn't wait for the answer. It was up to you to choose the most important one.

"No ma, we haven't found her back yet." I felt the tears burning behind my eyes. "O, sweetheart." She pulled me in to a hug, and I started crying. My dad laid a hand on my bag. This was really all I needed right now. People I loved, being there for me.

And I just couldn't stand the fact that I couldn't do the same thing for Jade right now.

…

"So, what happened?" My ma had made some coffee, and we were all sitting in the living room now. I couldn't put this off any longer. "At about one AM, Mrs. West called me. She said she couldn't find Jade. She wasn't at home, she didn't answer her cellphone, and nobody knew where she was."

I stopped for a moment, and reminded myself to breath. "So, I went there, and she called the police. And we've been at the station all night." Seriously, I needed to keep breathing. "Has the police any idea about where she could be yet?"

I couldn't believe I didn't start my story with that. "Yeah, I'm, I'm sorry, I don't really think to clear." I felt the tears running down my face again. "Ma, she was kidnapped! She was kidnapped!"

"Dear lord." My ma was shocked at this news. "But, but how do they know that, was there a note or something, or..?" I interrupted her. "No, there was a phone call. That lunatic just called the police! He said he was going to kill her!" I couldn't control my tears anymore.

"O, dear lord." My ma couldn't take it anymore either. "But, who did it then?" My dad asked. "Her father! Her own father! And now her own father is going to kill her!" That was too much for me. I couldn't talk about it anymore.

My dad held me. Shushed me. And slowly I got a little calmness back. "I just want to go to bed, dad. I just want to go to sleep." I wiped the tears away. "Of course. You must be exhausted. Come on, I'll walk you." And I let him take me upstairs, and tuck me in. And I had never been so glad to have my parents.

"Dad, I, I almost forgot. I promised I'd call Cat in the morning. She knew Jade was missing, but she doesn't know anything else yet. She's probably worried sick. Can you call Officer Vega, ask him if somebody else can call her for me, Tori perhaps, or he. I just don't want to talk about it anymore."

"I will, son. It'll be okay. You just go to sleep. I promise to wake you up if there's any news." I smiled at him. "Thanks dad." He grinned. "That's all right!"

"No, I mean it. Thanks for everything." I paused for a moment. "Thanks for being my dad."


	17. a little help

**Chapter 17. **–A little help

_I get by with a little help from my friends._

_~John Lennon_

**Tori's POV**

Just when I almost fell asleep, I heard somebody knocking on the door. My dad came in. "Hey hon." I rubbed my eyes. "Hey dad. I just decided I'm going to try and get some sleep to, here on the couch." I was seriously tired. A whole night completely without sleep, took more from me than I expected.

"That's a very good idea dear, you'll need it. But before you do that, I just need to ask you something. Mr. Oliver, Beck's father, just called. Beck said he needed someone to call Cat, because…" I interrupted him. "Say no more. Beck already told me he had to call Cat. And now you need me to do it, right?"

"Well only if you're up to it of course." I stood up from the couch. "And Beck isn't?" I was beginning to worry a little about Beck. He hadn't been himself tonight. And although that wasn't strange at all, this did kind of surprise me. Beck was always the strong one.

"No he is not. Mr. Oliver said it was mostly because he was so tired, but that he also found it very hard to talk about it." Well, I sure could understand him about being tired. I needed sleep to. But first I had to call Cat. She needed to here this from me.

Beck would have known how to tell her, how to sugarcoat this, as if there was absolutely nothing wrong. But I didn't think my dad knew her good enough to do that.

"Of course I'll call her." I grabbed my phone, and began to look for 'C' in my contacts. "You sure it's not too much trouble? I could call her you know." I shook my head. "No, I'll do it. It'll be fine." But I wasn't so sure about that. "Want me to stay?" My dad asked. I shook my head.

"Tori!" She shouted through the phone. "Hi Cat. Are you all right?" I had to stay as calm and cheery as possible, so I wouldn't upset her. "No, I'm not! I'm worried about Jade. I don't know where she is! Beck would call me, but…" I cut her off. "I know Cat, but Beck can't call you right now, he's asleep."

"O. But why is he asleep, it's morning, school is going to start in less than two hours?" I was just thinking about what to say, when she forgot about the whole question. "But, why are you calling? Do you know anything about Jade? Do you know where she is?" This was going to be hard. "Yes, I…"

"Have you found her?" I swallowed a tear back. "No, Cat, we haven't found her yet." I heard a sob on the other side of the phone. "But he promised. He promised he would have found her by tomorrow, and it is tomorrow now!"

"Did Beck promise you that?" She sobbed again. "Yes." I took a deep breath. "Cat, I think he said that because he wanted it to be true so bad. And at first, we really thought we would find her very quickly." Cat began to cry. "But it's not true, and you haven't found her! And now Jade is gone!"

"Cat, calm down! Jade is not gone, and we will find her! We will find her, okay?" To my own surprise, she actually did calm down a little bit. "Kaykay." She said softly. "Now, I'm going to call André, and I'll tell him everything. And I'll make sure he is going to pick you up for school, so you won't have to be alone, all right?"

"Kaykay." She whispered again. "But why can't you be there too? And Beck?" I sighed. "I'm sorry dear, but Beck and I just have to get some sleep right now. We've been up all night. But André will be there. And Robbie. All right?"

"Can I come to you then after school? I want to help you look for Jade!" Well, that wasn't going to happen. But I would find a solution for that later. "Of course. I'll contact André, and everything will be all right." It really surprised me that my voice was still this calm. Cheery, almost. "Okay Tori. Thank you."

"Bye-bye, Cat, love you!" I made a kissing sound into the phone. "I love you too Tori, bye-bye." I put down the phone. This was hardly a glimpse of the cheery, crazy Cat we knew. And I hadn't even told her anything yet. I needed André to make sure that she wouldn't hear anything about it either.

Maybe my dad could explain things to her, later today. He was really great with these things, when it came to little kids. So why couldn't he do it for little Cat's then?


	18. lifting others

**Chapter 18. **–Lifting others

_We rise by lifting others._

_~Robert Ingersoll_

**Andre's POV**

"Grandma, relax! It's just my phone!" We seriously had to consider bringing her to a retirement home. It was just, not okay, if she started to mix up the sound of a phone, and an air raid. "Hey, Tori, what's up?"

"A lot." The tone of her voice sounded serious. "Talk to me girl, what's wrong?" I heard a sob on the other side. "Still a lot. André, it's jade." She was almost crying. "What's the matter with Jade?" I was really beginning to worry. "André, you're not going to believe this, but she was kidnapped."

For one moment I was lost for words. I sat down, and took a deep breath. This wasn't real. "André? Are you still there?" Tori asked. "Yeah, I, I'm still there. What, what did you just say?" I heard what she said of course, but a part of me just didn't realize that yet.

"She was kidnapped André! It's horrible! I've been at the police station all night, only knowing that my best friend's life is in danger, and there is nothing I can do about it! It's like I'm in some kind of a nightmare, only… Only I can't wake up."

I took a very deep breath before I was able to speak again. "Tori, could you… Could you please begin with the beginning with this?" She took a deep breath to. "My dad was called tonight, for a case about a missing girl. Jade." She stopped for a moment.

"I was up, and my dad told me everything. He took me with to Jade's mom, and then to the police station. They, they found out who it was too. Who did this." She swallowed. "It's her father." Okay, stop it right there. This was like, some kind of a bad movie. This was not real. "What?"

"I know!" She started crying again. "I keep thinking that it's not real, that it's a bad dream or something, but it's not. And I… I just don't know what to do anymore."

"Do you need me to come?" She sighed. "No. Thanks, but, there's no need. I'm going to sleep now anyway, I, I haven't slept at all last night. But I do need you to take care of Cat today. She knows, and… Well, you'll understand. Can you take her to school, and look out for her today?"

"Of course I will. But, you told Cat?" Dealing with Cat was quite… difficult. "Yeah, well, that's a long story. I'll tell you later today. I promised her I would see her after school, so if you'll come with her, I'll explain everything to you then. "Okay." Right now, I would have gotten along with most anything she would say.

"O, and one more thing. Cat doesn't know Jade was kidnapped, she just knows she is missing. You have to make sure it remains that way. At least until she's here." Okay, that made sense. I had been wondering how she would have told Cat without killing her with it. "Don't worry, it'll be fine."

I wish I did not just said that. How could everything be fine? "Thanks André." She said. "I'll see you later then." Could I possible stop saying such inappropriate things? "Will you call me when you're done with school? So you'll know where to meet me."

"Sure. And, Tori? I'll… I'll be there for you." I didn't know what else to say. "Thank you." She swallowed a tear back. "I'm, going to get some sleep now, I'll see you later today."

"Okay, see you then. Hang in there, okay?" I tried to speak confident, but I don't think it came out that way. "Thanks." She hung up the phone.

I sighed. This was bad. Tori was right. The worst thing about this whole situation was that you had to sit back and do nothing. Made you realize how helpless, how impotent you really were. And how life was really nothing but a windblown air bladder. Just as vulnerable, and just as uncontrollable.

I stood up. I had better go pick up Cat, she needed me now. At least that I could control.

…

Cat hadn't said a word since we walked in to the school building. And she had been holding hands with me and Robbie all day. I was seriously worried about what it would do to her if she heard the whole story.

I had decided to tell Robbie everything, since he was part of the gang, but not to let anyone else know for a while. That really wasn't up to me.

A girl, I think named Sheila, came walking up to us angrily. "Do you guys know where Jade is?" She asked crossly. I felt Cat's hand squeezing in mine. I looked at Robbie meaningful, and he took the hint. He grabbed Cat's other hand, and carefully led her away from us.

I decided not really to lie about Jade. I wasn't very good at lying, and besides, if I would lie, I would also have to remember the lies, and I wasn't really looking for to that. I just had to keep myself as uninformed as possible.

"No, no I don't know where she is." Technically, that wasn't a lie. I wasn't aware of Jade's exact location right now. "And they don't know either?" She pointed at Cat and Robbie, who were standing a few meters further, next to Robbie's locker. "No, I'm sure they don't."

"Where's Beck? I'm sure he knows." She looked around. "O, he's not in school today. He stayed home sick." Okay, that already came a little closer to lying, but there was still some truth in it. As long as she wouldn't ask about Tori, in which case I had to tell her she was at the police-station, and I didn't think she would just buy that without asking further questions, I was fine.

She sighed irritated. "Why do you want to know, anyway?" I asked her. "Because we were supposed to give a presentation, an hour ago! I can't believe that bitch! Just disappearing, while…" I had to restrain myself not to erupt in anger at her, for saying such mean things about a girl in such a horrible situation.

"Yeah, uhm, sorry, but I have to go." I left for Robbie and Cat. Robbie protectively held his arms around Cat. I wiped a tear off of her cheek. "C'mon. Let's go to Sikowitz's class."


	19. you're not alone

**Chapter 19. **–You're not alone

_It's often just enough to be with someone. You don't need to touch them. Not even talk. A feeling passes between you both. You're not alone._

_~Marilyn Monroe_

**Beck's POV**

I opened my eyes slowly. Man, I was hungry. How could I think of that at a moment like this? I checked my watch. A little after nine. I hadn't had more than, two, two-and-a-half hours of sleep. Yet I wasn't by far as tired anymore as I had been before my nap.

I stepped out of bed, almost feeling a little rested. I didn't bother putting on other clothes before going downstairs. "Hey ma." I said softly. "Beck! What are you doing up already?" I shocked my shoulders. "I just woke up." I sat down next to her at the kitchen table.

"Are you hungry?" She asked. "I'm starving." She stood up, and walked to the stove. "Well, just let me fix that." She said, breaking two eggs over a frying pan. I almost felt guilty. Sitting here in my cozy house, with my ma making me breakfast, while Jade was in danger! Probably scared to death somewhere, hungry, tired, alone.

"Here, you go sweetheart." My ma put an omelet in front of me. She looked me in the eyes. "Are you thinking about her?" What a question. Of course I was thinking of her! But I didn't say that. I didn't say anything. Instead, the tears dripping down my face spoke for me.

My ma pulled me in a hug. She didn't say anything either. We both just softly sobbed in to each other's shoulders. And that's when I realized why I was so comforted by her. We both loved Jade. We both missed her, and we were both worried sick about her.

And I felt so comforted by the thought that I wasn't alone in this. That there were so many people who felt the same way I did. So many people who loved Jade.

And I just begged to God that she knew that.


	20. every possible way

**Chapter 20. **–Every possible way

_No, I'm not going to give up just yet. Not until I've tried every possible way. I won't say I can't. I will. _

_~Author unknown_

**Jade's POV**

I opened my eyes, but I didn't see anything. It was too dark in here. I got up from the matrass. It had been the only object I had spotted in the room, but since I couldn't see anything, I couldn't tell if the room was really empty. I was so thirsty. Maybe there stood some water in here.

I got down on my knees, and crawled over the floor, feeling my way with one of my hands. The matrass laid against the wall, so it wasn't hard to find that. I crawled further, alongside the wall. It didn't take me very long to get back to the matrass, so that meant that the room was very small.

There stood nothing against the walls, but maybe I would have more luck if I crawled to the middle of the room. I crawled in to equal lines across the room, in till I had been everywhere. But the only thing I encountered, was the burned-out candle.

I wondered where I was. I couldn't be far from home, we hadn't been driving long at all. I wasn't very good at taking gauge, but I bet we hadn't been driving more than fifteen minutes. That meant I was still in LA.

That was probably a smart thing to do. The last place they would look, was right in front of their eyes. This was the best way to torture as well me as my mom. We both knew what was he was going to do, but there was nothing either one of us could do about it.

He was going to keep this going until we were both mad with grief. And then he would finish it.

…

I heard footsteps coming closer. I stood up immediately. Was he coming this way? Was he going to kill me? I heard the key inserting the lock. My heart was starting to beat faster, but I forbid myself to be afraid.

He could take my life, and he would. But never again would I grant him the pleasure of seeing my fear. The door opened, and the bright light entered the room. I couldn't help but squinting my eyes for a few seconds, but I forced myself to open them immediately.

He looked at me, and I looked right back. He smiled at me satisfied, like he had already killed me. And in a way, I guess he had. My eyes quickly got used to the sudden bright light, and I saw he was holding a bottle of water.

"You want this?" He asked. I didn't say anything. That wouldn't do any good. He grinned mean, but then threw me the bottle, which I somehow caught. I opened it immediately, and took a big gulp.

He laughed out loud. "You know. Your mom is awful worried about you. She still hasn't left the police station. And neither has that friend of yours. Vega." Suddenly, I just wasn't scared anymore. "So that means you got what you wanted, right?"

A big grin filled his face. "Well, comes mighty close. But before I really get what I want, you have to be dead. That's when she's punished enough. That's when she has really lost everything. But I can't do that yet. Because first, she has to get a chance to save you."

The grin grew bigger. "But she won't!" I looked bewildered at this sick man. "To lose you, that has to be her punishment! That'll be the only thing worse than death itself." And he started laughing again. There had to be something wrong with the man.

"You'll spend the rest of your life in prison! They'll find you! My mom knows you did this, and they'll find you!" He walked closer to me. "Well, then I'll still have my revenge. Maybe I'm going to spend the rest of my life in prison, but at least I'll have the satisfaction of knowing that you and your mom won't have a rest of your lives."

"Now, if I was you, I wouldn't try to escape." He said threatening. He grabbed the lamp, and walked back to the door. "Wait! Just leave the lamp, I can't see a thing in here!" He only laughed as he closed the door. Leaving me here alone in the dark again.

…

I couldn't stop thinking about what he said. _"__You know, your mom is awful worried about you. She still hasn't left the police station. And neither has that friend of yours. Vega."_ How could he know that, if he had been here all the time?

So he hadn't been here the entire time. He had been at the police station. Probably. If he left before, maybe he'd leave again.

Maybe I could escape.

The only thing was, that I had no idea when, and even if, he'd leave again. I was just going to have to take that risk.

He was already going to kill me. It couldn't get any worse. Could it?

I'd have to take the risk.

But then there was the other only thing. How could I possible get away? The door was locked. There were no windows. The walls were made out of concrete. There was no way out.

There had to be a way out. I was Jade West. I could get out of this stupid prison.

Getting the lock of the door was my only option. But how? I didn't have like a skeleton or something. In the movies, a girl would get the lock open by plugging it with a hair clip. But this wasn't a movie. Besides. I didn't even have a hair clip.

What did I have, anyway? I felt my pockets.

Gum.

Candy wrapper.

Earplugs.

Scissors.

Wait. Scissors? I had had my scissors with me, the entire time, and he didn't notice? Lucky bastard that I was!

I mean, not that scissors were really the kind of tools I would have wished for at the moment, but it was something.

It was a chance.


	21. things to do

**Chapter 21. **–Things to do

_I keep myself busy with things to do, but every time I pause, I still think of you._

_~Author unknown_

**Beck's POV**

I stood up. "Ma, I'm going back to the station." I just couldn't sit here and do nothing anymore. I probably wasn't going to be of any help, but I at least needed to feel like I was doing everything possible. Luckily, my ma understood. She always did.

She only nodded, and I left the house. I got into my car, and grabbed my keys to start it. My eyes suddenly fell on my keychain. It was a cheap, little heart, with the letter J written on it. I had bought it at the shop of the first gas station I had ever refueled my very own car.

Jade had been with me, and she already found it stupid that I wanted to buy a souvenir. But she nearly gagged when I decided to choose the heart. But she secretly loved it whenever I did those things, even though she would never admit it.

As I turned onto the road, I entered the phone number of Mr. Vega. Squirrel! My brakes squeaked just in time. Stupid little animal. Well… and I shouldn't be on the phone while driving of course. And then I realized that I was actually calling to a police officer. I almost smiled at the thought.

"Hello, Beck." Mr. Vega answered the phone. "Hi Mr. Vega, are you still at the police station?" I turned the wheel with my right hand. "Yeah, I am." He sounded tired. "I'm on my way there right now. Is that all right?"

"Yes, of course it is." He said. I sighed. "I know there's probably nothing I can do, but… I'd feel better anyway." I just needed to be somewhere, where I could at least feel like I wasn't completely useless. "I understand. Tori and Mrs. West are still here, but they're both asleep."

That did kind of surprise me. Why would they still be there? "Okay. Well, anyway, I'm there in like five minutes." At least in LA, everything was close.

If he did kept her here, she would be close too right now.

…

I knocked on the door, but didn't wait for an answer to open it. "Hi Mr. Vega." He looked up from his desk. "O, hi Beck." I walked in to the room. "I take there's really nothing I can do?" I began hopefully. He looked apologizing. "I'm sorry, but, no."

"That's all right, I kind of expected that already." But it wasn't all right. I needed distraction. "Did Tori wake up yet?" I asked. "No she hasn't. And neither has Mrs. West." Wait, Mrs. West had fainted. Was she still unconscious?

"Mrs. West still hasn't woken up?" I asked a little worried. "No, but that's really normal. She was just exhausted." He reassured me. "Okay." I didn't know what else to say, really. I only came because I secretly hoped I could get some kind of a distraction. But, obviously, I wasn't going to find one here.

But then I got an idea. "Would it be possible for me to see through his record?" That would be a good distraction, and I would still feel like I was doing something for Jade. And maybe, just maybe, I really would find something.

Luckily, Mr. Vega understood. "I don't think I'm legally allowed to show you that, but… as long as you won't say anything, I suppose I can make an exception." He smiled. "I have a computer for you in the other room. Want me to show you?" I nodded. He walked me there, and I waited for him to power up the file.

"So, here you go." Mr. Vega stepped aside, so I could reach the computer. "Thanks." I said. "If you need anything, I'm in my office." he said before turning around, and leaving the room.

I was pretty surprised at how much information there was in front of me. I had no idea what I was looking for, so I just decided to begin reading at page number one. "_Name: Ronald Scott, age: 47."_

Apparently, he worked at some factory, named 'textile manufactory'. I don't know why that struck me, but the company seemed somehow familiar to me. I tried googling the name, but I still didn't know what I was supposed to remember about it. Maybe it would be me to mind later.


	22. monsters

**Chapter 22. **–Monsters

_All monsters are human._

_~Peter Evans_

**Jade's POV**

After plugging the lock for hours, at least that's what it felt like, I began to lose hope. This was never going to work.

It didn't matter. As long as I was trying, I hadn't given up. And as long as I hadn't given up, there was still hope. I could still survive this.

I didn't allow myself to think about anything else. I had to keep going. Even if there wouldn't be any result at all. It was something to do. Something to keep busy. Something to keep myself from losing my mind.

Click.

I wasn't sure if I'd really heard that. Maybe my imagination just took the bit in its hands. I didn't dear hoping I had really unlocked it. I slowly pulled down the doorknob. Slowly, real slowly I pushed it open.

My heart skipped a beat when I felt the door was actually opening. I was out. I was in danger, probably even more than I had been inside that room, but I was out.

And I was in another room. A giant room. It was still dark, but my eyes had gotten used to that. It wasn't even as bad in here as it had been in the little room. There were some windows in here and, although they had been boarded up, there were still little gleams of light coming in.

I had to find a door. I had to get out. I walked towards the wall, where there was more light, but I bumped in to something.

Ouch.

It looked like some kind of a big crate. Now that I was closer to the light, I could see that they were everywhere. And by the looks of it, they were all broken. Where was I? It didn't matter. The only thing that mattered, was for me to get the heck out of here. Now.

Just then, I heard something. My heart stopped. It was the sound of a squeaky door. On the other side of the room, there was a door opening. And somebody stepped in.

I had to get out of the light. I immediately jumped back to the crate I had just tripped over. If I could hide in there, maybe he wouldn't see me. Without a sound, I crawled into the big crate.

I realized what a stupid mistake I had made by trying to escape. I had known I wouldn't get away. As soon as he'd see the open door, he'd know I was gone. And the first thing he would do next, was look into every crate in this room.

It was only a matter of time before he'd find me. And Lord knows what he'd do to me then. And every second brought that moment just a little bit closer. Every footstep echoed louder in my head.

And eventually, he reached the door. He put the key in the lock, and turned it. That was where he must've found out that the door was already unlocked. With a powerful jerk, he pulled the door open.

I covered my ears. I didn't want to know what he would be screaming. Where he was searching. And when he would find me.

It couldn't have been more than a couple of minutes, but it seemed like there had passed hours of nothing before he tore the crate open, and looked into my eyes. An evil, sadistic grin filled his face. "Told you, you wouldn't get away." He whispered.

He grabbed my arm, and tore me out of the crate. I fell down, and he pulled me by my leg over the floor. Back to the little room. My head hit some of the shelf's that lie around, but I didn't make a sound.

He pushed me back in to the little room, and I crawled in to a corner, pulling my knees up to my chest, in an attempt of protection. Just before I closed my eyes, I saw him standing in front of me. Holding a large piece of wood raised above his head, ready to let the beats come down on my body.


	23. when life is low

**Chapter 23.** –When life is low

_A friend gives hope when life is low, a friend is a place when you have nowhere to go, a friend is honest, a friend is true. A friend is precious and that my friend is you._

_~Author unknown_

**Liza's POV**

I slowly opened my eyes. It was dark in the room. I looked around, to see Tori. O God. That meant that it hadn't been a nightmare. It was all for real. I got up, heading for the door. I tried not to make too much noise, so I wouldn't wake up Tori.

Which I failed. "Mrs. West." I turned around. "Hey sweetie, I'm sorry. Did I wake you up?" Tori got up from the couch, and walked over to me. "Yeah, but that's all right. I was only here to wait for you anyway."

"O, you shouldn't have done that." She smiled warmly. "Yes I did." I turned on the light. "Thank you." I said. But I didn't just say it. I really, really meant it. "Is there anything…" I didn't have to finish my question.

"Nothing. At least, nothing I know about. But I've been sleeping too." The little glimpse of hope in her voice, was true. It gave me just a little bit of faith too. "Well, let's go find out then." We left the room together, praying for a miracle.

But, Officer Vega could only tell us what we already feared. "I'm sorry, but there is no news yet." Even though I already knew what he was going to say, I still found myself disappointed. "Look, there is really nothing you can do now. Maybe, the both of you should go home, get some rest, get something to eat, and I'll call you if anything changes at all."

I slowly nodded. Tori cleared her throat. "You can come home with me, Mrs. West. You shouldn't be alone right now." I didn't counteract. I was too tired. And I needed the company too much. I smiled at her. "I would like that."

"O, maybe you would like to go see Beck first. He's in the next room." Tori looked surprised. "I thought Beck left hours ago?" I checked my watch. It was close to noon. I had slept all morning.

"He came back at about ten o'clock. He needed distraction. But, now that you're awake, maybe you can take him home with you, if he wants to." Officer Vega suggested. "I'll ask." Tori said.

I followed her out, and in to another room. "Hi Beck!" Tori said. Beck was clearly deep in thought with whatever it might be that filled the screen of his computer. He looked a little disturbed at us. "O, hi! You're awake."

"Yeah, we just woke up. We're going home now Beck. To my place. We thought you might want to come with us." She said. He shook his head. "No. No, but thanks." I walked up to him. "Why not Beck? There's really nothing you can do for her now."

"I, I know, but… I just… I need to feel like I'm at least trying to do something. Can't you understand?" I laid a calming hand on his shoulder. "Of course I understand. And if you feel better by staying here, than we're not going to make you come with us. Just, just don't be too hard on yourself, all right? Take some rest."

He sighed. "All right." He paused for a second. "Thanks." I smiled. "You're welcome. We're leaving now, but you can call us anytime, okay?" He nodded. "Coming Tori?" I opened the door. "Yeah." She walked away, and I followed her out.

"Hey Gary!" Tori walked towards the agent Officer Vega had introduced to me earlier this morning, as his colleague at the case. "Gary, can you drive us home? We don't have a car here." I had almost forgotten. I wasn't thinking clear at all. I had to get my mind together.

"Of course I will. Just give me one second, I'll be right there." We walked out the door, and waited at the car. We both kept silent. There was really nothing I could think of to say. "Okay, shall we go?" Gary suddenly stood behind us.

"We shall. You can take the front seat, Mrs. West." Tori quickly slid in the backseat, so I was forced to sit next to Gary. I liked the girl. And I knew my daughter did so too. Even though she would never admit it.

I was glad Tori now knew about Jade's background, so she could understand her reactions in some situations better. So she could be an even better friend to her in the future.

If Jade would have a future.

**…**

Tori waved at the officer, Gary, one more time, before she let us in. Mrs. Vega noticed us immediately. "Tori! Darling, you're here!" She walked up to us. "O sweetheart." She whispered, cupping her daughter's face with her hands.

God, I missed my own little girl.

"Mom, this is Liza West." Tori said, losing herself from her mother's arms. "Mrs. West, this is my mom. Holly." The woman laid her hands on my shoulders. "I'm so sorry dear." She whispered. I only nodded. I didn't want to cry anymore.

She suddenly dropped the subject. "Have you girls had anything decent to eat yet today?" She asked. "Just some coffee, to be honest." Tori told her. She shook her head. "Well, why don't you two go sit on the couch, while I fix you something." She left for the kitchen.

Tori sat down on the couch on the right. "Just sit anywhere, Mrs. West." She said. "My mom will be ready soon." I slowly walked up to the other couch, and slid myself down on it.

Holly Vega returned from the kitchen quickly. "Here you go." She put some sandwiches and two cups of coffee on the table in front of us. "Thanks mom." Tori said. I tried to smile at her. Tori grabbed one of the sandwiches, and began eating it eagerly.

But I couldn't do anything but look at them. Holly sat down next to me. "Honey, you ought to eat something. You're not going to help her by starving yourself." I bet he was starving her. I didn't want to imagine how afraid she had to be. Alone. Cold. Hungry. "I know." I said. "I'm just not hungry."

"I see." she said. "What was the last time you had anything to eat then?" I shrugged my shoulders. I didn't actually remember the exact last time. But I knew I hadn't had any dinner last night either. I hadn't been eating for at least 20 hours.

"Darling, I really think you need to eat something now. Even if you're not hungry." I knew she was right, but there was a lump in my throat. Even looking at the food in front of me, made me want to throw up. I picked up the coffee, and took a zip.

"Don't you agree?" She said softly. I nodded my head. "I just don't feel too good." I said. "I understand." She said. "But I think you're only going to feel worse if you won't eat." I knew she was right. Again. She held up the plate, and I grabbed a sandwich. I took a small bite, and chewed on it forever.

It didn't have any taste. I managed to swallow it, and then took another bite. And then another. Slowly, I began feeling a little bit better, and the food got a little bit of its taste back. I smiled at Holly, who was still sitting next to me, and took another sandwich.

Tori came to sit next to me, and crawled on to my frame. Holly laid her arm over my shoulders, and I put an arm around Tori's waist.

I had never really known either one of these women, yet right now, they felt like my closest friends. Maybe it really was like that old saying. A true friend is there for the time when there is trouble. And maybe, it even went further than that. Maybe, these times of trouble even made these true friends.

And right now, I was glad I'd found them, and they were there for me.

I was glad to have friends.


	24. everything

**Chapter 24. **–Everything

_Everything I've loved, became everything I lost. _

_~Oliver Sykes_

**Jade's POV**

I opened my eyes, but it was still too dark to see anything. Everything ached. I tried to sit up, but a sharp pain shot through my body. So thirsty. The matrass. I'd left my bottle of water by the matrass. If only I could just crawl over there, I could at least get something to drink.

I tried to move over, but something was blocking me. The wall? I lifted my arm, but I hit something hard, only like half a meter above me. Suddenly I was wide awake. I scanned my arms around me, but they were stopped immediately on all sides.

I had to be in a very, very small space. Where the heck was I?

And suddenly, the horrific truth dawned on to me. I was in a coffin. He buried me alive.

A shock went through my entire body. I started banging on the shelf above me. I cried as loud as I could, praying for somebody to hear me. I felt panic starting to take over.

No. I had to keep calm. Screaming wasn't going to do any good, and neither would banging. I tried to concentrate on my breathing.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

I was going to die.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

And nobody could do a thing about it.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

Because nobody even knew I was here.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

And I couldn't possible let them know.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

After a while, I was somehow able to get my breathing steady again. I felt a tear going down my cheek. I was going to die. Nobody knew where I was, nobody would hear me screaming. Nobody could help me anymore.

I wiped the tears away. I was Jade West for goodness sake. I wasn't going to let the panic take over. If I was going to go, I was going to go with pride. Even if I was all alone.

In my mind, I started to say goodbye to everyone I loved. My mom. Beck. Cat. André, and Robbie. And even Tori. I loved them all. And I'd never get to see any of them again.

And so I lay there. Waiting for the oxygen to run out. Remembering everything my father had taken away from me.

"Congratulations dad." I whispered into the dark. "You won."


	25. finally

**Chapter 25. **–Finally

_It took forever… But I finally found you. _

_Clementine von Radics_

**Beck's POV**

I rubbed my eyes. So tired. I promised Mrs. West I'd take a break, get some rest. Maybe now was a good time. This was useless anyway. I felt so small, so helpless.

I sat back in my chair, and closed my eyes. But I couldn't keep my mind off of Ronald Scott's file. There was something about it that I was supposed to remember. God, this was torture. Maybe, just maybe, there was something hidden way in the back of my head, that was going to be able to help Jade.

But I couldn't find it.

Think harder. It was something about his job. Textile Manufactory. The name was so damned familiar to me, but I just couldn't place it.

Textile Manufactory. "Textile Manufactory." I said out loud, hoping the sound of it would make me remember. "Textile Manufactory." I said again. "What the heck am I supposed to remember about it?" Okay, now I was talking to myself. Calm down.

And suddenly, without any warning, it flashed through my head. My uncle worked there. Seriously? Was that all? Was that the so important thing that kept buzzing through my mind? Was that supposed to help me? Was that supposed to help Jade?

And that was it. My last little gleam of hope, was now crushed.

I laughed from total despair.

I thought about how my uncle used to take me to their big stockroom, where they kept dozens of large textile crates. Now that I was older, I guessed that my uncle probably wasn't the most responsible babysitter you could think of.

But, when I was five, I loved to go there and play hide and seek with my uncle, or climbing every crate in the room. And, when I was done playing, my uncle would let me use the computer, standing in the little office of the building.

I hadn't been there in a long time. That was probably because my uncle hadn't been babysitting me for a couple of years now. But they didn't use that building anymore either. It was kind of falling apart now. How a shame it was, such a huge building that was simply left to rot.

And that's where it hit me.

That storage was completely deserted, and if Ronald Scott was an employee of the factory, he had to know about it.

It had to be where he kept Jade.

I jumped up, and ran to Mr. Vega's office. I swung the door open and stumbled in. "I know where she is!" I screamed. "What? How?" Mr. Vega reacted. "It doesn't matter! The former warehouse of the Textile Manufactory is completely deserted, and he knows that! It has to be where she is!"

Mr. Vega looked at me, and then at Gary. The other officer nodded. They both got up and grabbed their guns. "We're going there immediately." Mr. Vega said. "You call Tori."

"Wait! You have to take me with you, you have to!" I begged. Mr. Vega looked at me, and seemed to consider it for a moment. "You have to promise me you'll stay in the car." He said. "Of course!" I said, knowing I probably wouldn't.

We all raced outside to the police car, and I grabbed my phone to call Tori.


	26. love is dangerous

**Chapter 26 **–Love is dangerous

_Life is risky, love is dangerous, both are worth it._

_Sam Shweiky_

**Tori's POV**

The long silence was finally broken by the sound of my phone. Caller ID told me it was Beck. "Hey Beck, what's…" He cut me off. "Tori, I know where she is!" I jumped up from the couch. "What? How? Where?"

"There's no time!" Beck said. "Just come to the former warehouse of textile manufactory, you know where that is?" I thought quickly. "I'll find it."

"Good, but when you get there, you can't get out of the car, it's dangerous!" I nodded, only to realize he of course was not in the position to see that. "Yes." I then said, but he couldn't hear me anymore. He hung up already.

"What was that?" Mrs. West asked worriedly. "They know where she is." I said softly, still trying to make myself believe it. "Get in the car, now!" I screamed. All three of us hurried outside, to my mother's car.

"Get to the old manufactory warehouse!" I shouted from the backseat. My mom nodded, and hit the gas. The wheels squeaked as she took off.

Please, just please let us get there in time.

…

The few minutes it must have taken us to drive out of town, felt like hours to me. When we finally reached the building, my mom refused to drive on the grounds. "We will wait here in till my husband gets here." She said firmly.

"No!" Mrs. West said. "No, I have to get out, I have to get to her!" She began pulling the doorknob, but my mom locked it. "Liza, please!" She said. "If you go out there, that'll only be dangerous on us, and Jade!"

Mrs. West actually did calm down a little bit, she nodded and sat back in her seat. At the same moment, a police car pulled up. "Dad!" I screamed. I heard my mom sigh in relieve. Mrs. West didn't make a sound. She just bit her lip as the two police officers got out of the car and ran into the building, guns drawn.

**So, minor cliffhanger! Don't worry, new chapter's are coming up!**


	27. never give up

**Chapter 27. **–Never give up

_Never give up on anybody. Miracles happen every day. _

_H. Jackson Brown Jr._

**Beck's POV**

After decades of time, Mr. Vega finally returned from the building. But no Jade. He pulled the door open. "Come on, get out." Was all he said. He immediately headed through, to the Vega car, which was close behind us.

I quickly got out of the car, and followed him there. "Hey, what's happening? She's not there?" I asked in disbelief. Tori and her mother had also gotten out of the car. "She is not here." Mr. Vega told us.

Mrs. West buried her face in her hands. "But we did found evidence, which proves that there has recently been someone here." Mr. Vega said. "Like what?" Tori asked. "There's a little room with a matrass in it. She was probably kept there."

I knew he was talking about the little office, where the computer once stood. "There lay half a bottle of water, and a burned-out candle in there." Had he taken her somewhere else then? I pushed away the sickening thought that crossed my mind. She was still alive. She had to be.

"Justin!" Gary was running towards us, yelling Mr. Vega's first name. "Justin, I found digging traces. There fresh." He said. Mr. Vega looked briefly at Mrs. West, whose mouth just dropped. And I felt the same way. "Let's get the shovels then." He mumbled.

Digging? That meant… O god. I felt myself getting sick. "No." Tori said. "No, it's not true! It's something else! It is!" I felt panic taking over. "Well of course it's something else!" I screamed. "She's not…" My voice trailed off.

I shook my head. I had to get over there. I ran in the direction Mr. Vega had left, Tori close behind. The two men were digging fast, but careful. I felt so helpless as I stood there, watching them. Doing nothing but fear what was going to happen.

"I got something!" Mr. Vega suddenly yelled. A jolt went through my body. "It's something hard!" Gary went to help him dig out the big object, hidden under the earth. "O my God." Mr. Vega whispered. "It's a coffin."

I fell down on my knees. Everybody kept silent. The two officers quietly dug out the coffin, and dragged it out of the hole. Gary began to pry the coffin open with a shovel. I squeezed my fist till it was white. And suddenly, the lid flew open.

And there she was. Her pale face was covered in blood and bruises. She was still beautiful. Mr. Vega grabbed her wrist, but dropped it after a few seconds. He pressed his head on her chest, and kept listening a little longer.

"There's still a heartbeat, call paramedics! Now!" That's where I started crying. Jade was alive. Everything else disappeared into a blur. Nothing other than Jade was important anymore. She was alive. She would be all right. She was going to be fine.

She had to be.

**You didn't really think i was going to let Jade die, did you? ;)**


	28. miracles

**Chapter 28. **–Miracles

_Don't believe in miracles –depend on them. _

_~Laurence J. Peter_

**Tori's POV**

"There's still a heartbeat, call paramedics! Now!" I cannot describe the relief I felt that moment. The happiness. Jade was alive. There was a chance again. There was hope.

We all gathered around the sleeping Jade. We couldn't hug, or lift her, because dad was afraid she'd stop breathing if she would be put under any pressure. But that was okay. As long as she was there. As long as we could see her, touch her. As long as she was alive, it was all fine by me.

The ambulance arrived in under five minutes, and three people got out. "Everybody, please, step away from the girl!" The man ordered, while the two women started to lift Jade on a stretcher. "Please be careful!" Beck said.

My dad laid a hand on his shoulder. "She's in safe hands, son." He said. "I promise we'll take good care of her." One of the nurses told him.

Beck and Mrs. West were allowed in the ambulance, and my parents and I would follow close behind. My mom was in the backseat with me, and I leaned against her frame. "I still can't believe she's alive." I said. "When Gary said he found those digging traces, I was just… I didn't want to believe it but…"

My mom stroke my cheek. "I was just so sure she'd be gone." My dad nodded. "It really is a miracle. If Beck hadn't thought about that building, we never would have been in time."

"How did Beck know he'd be keeping her there?" I asked. "Scott was an employee at that fabric." My dad answered. "I don't know why Beck thought about it, but it saved her life that he did."

"Dad?" I asked. "Will he like… Is he going to get away with it? The truth please." My dad sighed. "The truth. All right. The truth is, that we are going to do everything possible to find him. We got his ID, and right now, everybody is on the lookout for Ronald Scott. But, truth is, that's pretty much all we've got."

He paused. "So, all he needs is a fake ID, and… Well. Let's say that it's going to be very hard to track him down." Angry tears filled my eyes. "That's so unfair!" I said. My dad sighed again. "I know dear. I know it is."


	29. weak people

**Chapter 29. **–Weak people

_Weak people; revenge. Strong people; forgive. Intelligent people; ignore. _

_Calvin Dillard_

**Ronald's POV**

Slowly, I turned the wheel and went left at the intersection. Everything was going right now. This time tomorrow, I'd be in France, and I'd be safe. I'd start a new life, without constantly being haunted by the past.

We were now even. My revenge was completed.

I scratched my scalp. I was still getting used to the wig that was glued on there. But it was necessarily, as were the big moustache, and the black, round glasses on my nose. Of course everybody would be looking for Ronald B. Scott. But nobody had ever heard of Samuel T. Fisher.

As soon as I would have reached my new house, I'd contact the LA police department. I'd tell them where to find Jade's body, and then I'd be able to leave this all behind.

I waited for the red light. No mistakes were allowed now. My fingers rhythmically tapped on the wheel, until the traffic light went green again. My foot pressed the accelerator, and the car took off.

The next moment, I saw the other car coming right at me. I hit the brakes, but it was too late. The stale smashed itself into my car, and a sharp pain immediately shot through my body. I heard somebody screaming, maybe it was me. My head hit the steering wheel, and everything went black.


	30. the bearer

**Chapter 30. **–The bearer

_Be the bearer of good news._

_~Author unknown_

**André's POV**

"André, where is Tori? She promised she'd meet me after school!" Cat pouted. "I know, girl, I know!" I sighed. It was getting close to four o'clock, and we'd been waiting for at least half an hour at my place now.

"Okay, so, I'll call her one more time, and if she still doesn't answer, we're going over there, all right?" I asked. Cat and Robbie nodded. _Beep… Beep… Beep… _I let the phone ring over and over and over again, until a computer voice told me to leave a message after the beep.

"Okay, let's go." I said. But at that moment, my phone began ringing. Cat squealed. "It's Tori!" I said. I picked it up. "Hello?" But it wasn't Tori. "André, its Trina. My dad just called me. Jade was found. She's alive, André! We ought to go to the hospital now, can you pick me up?"

At the mentioning of Jade's name, a jolt went through my body. "Yes, of course. We will be right there." I managed to say. "Good, I'll explain everything when you get here." She hung up.

"What did she say?" Robbie asked excitedly. "She's alive." Was all I said. "She's alive."


	31. my baby

**Just wanted to thank everybody who's been reading &amp; reviewing. I really appreciate it. **

**Chapter 31. **–My baby

_Don't you know you can't escape me. Oh darling 'cause you'll always be my baby. _

_~Mariah Carey_

**Liza's POV**

I still could not believe I had my little girl back. In the past hour, I hadn't let go of her hand once. I had to be absolutely sure she was really there. She was still very fragile, the doctor said, but there was a good chance for her to make it.

Her beautiful body was marked in bruises and wounds. I felt rage building up inside me, every time I'd look at them. What kind of a sick man could do this? Who could hurt his own child?

I didn't want to think about it. She was safe now. She was here with me. I had my baby back. I kissed her hand. I'd never let go of her again.

Tori stood up. "I'm going to get us all some coffee." She said. She left the room in silence. Beck was holding Jade's other hand. "Still can't believe I have her back." I whispered, probably more to myself than to him. I stroke a hair out of her face.

"You're going to be fine honey. I promise. You're going to be just fine."


	32. true friends

**Chapter 32.** –True friends

_Hard times will always reveal true friends._

_~Author unknown_

**Tori's POV**

"I'm going to get us all some coffee." I said. Neither Beck nor Mrs. West gave me any reaction, so I left anyway. On my way to the lobby, I ran in to my dad. "Hey, honey, I was just on my way to you." He said. "We called Trina, and she brought André, Cat and Robbie here. They're all in the lobby."

"Really?" I asked. "O, I'm so glad. I promised André I'd call him, but I completely forgot!" My dad reassured me. "Don't worry, we explained everything, they understand." He said. "Good." I sighed, glad that I wouldn't have to be the one to explain.

"Tori!" Cat was the first one to see me. She ran up to me, and jumped into my arms. "Tori, I missed you. I was so afraid!" she cried. "I know you were honey." I told her. "I'm scared too." I rubbed her back.

André came standing beside me, and laid his hand on my shoulder. "How is Jade now, can we see her?" Cat asked. I looked pleadingly at my dad. "O, honey, I don't think that's a good idea right now." He said. "But you can see her as soon as she's awake, I promise." She nodded.

"Tori, sweetie, come here." Trina walked up to me, and pulled me in a hug. I was so glad to see her. I silently cried in her shoulder, as she patted the back of my head. "She's going to be fine Tori." She hushed me. "It's okay. It's okay."

It wasn't okay, and we both knew it. But it still gave me some comfort to hear my big sis tell me that it was. It almost made me believe it.

Almost.

…

I took the last zip of my coffee, and then threw the plastic cup away. Jade still wasn't awake. The doctor told us that it was normal for somebody who had such a heavy brain concussion. That she'd probably be awake any moment now. I knew that. I knew I didn't have to worry.

But I couldn't help doing it anyway.

The door opened, and my dad came in. He looked worried. "Mrs. West?" He said. "Mrs. West, I'd like you to come with me, to CSI." We all looked up in surprise. "Why?" Mrs. West asked. "I need you to identify a body." He explained.

I think my mouth nearly dropped. "But, who? I mean… Who should…?" Mrs. West stammered. "There's been a car accident. The man in question was wearing a wig and a fake moustache. They've inquired his identification card, and it turned out to be fake. A good one tough."

Mrs. West cut him of. "But who is it?" My dad sighed. "We think it might be your ex-husband." Mrs. West brought her hand to her mouth. "Are, are you serious?" Beck asked. My dad nodded. "Gary has seen him, and he thinks he recognized him from the pictures."

Never in my life had I ever wished for someone to be dead before. But right now, I found myself praying to God for him to be. This man did not deserve anything else. If only this could be true…

It would all be over soon.


	33. the truth

**Chapter 33. **–The truth

_Sometimes the truth hurts. And sometimes it feels really good._

_~Henry Rollins_

**Liza's POV**

"We think it might be your ex-husband." For a moment the room started spinning. Ronald. Dead. Gone. Over. I didn't dare believing it yet. Maybe, just maybe, we were safe.

I stood up from my chair, and looked at my little girl. So vulnerable. "But, what about Jade? She's going to wake up anytime now. I have to be here." I said. "No. You have to go. We'll be with Jade, I won't leave her side." Beck assured me.

"Mrs. West, you have to go! What if it's really him? We need to know!" Tori sounded desperate. I stroke my daughter's cheek. "Okay." I looked back at Mr. Vega. "Let's go." I followed him out of the room, out of the hospital.

"Wait!" I turned around to see who was calling. Beck's mother, I believe her name was Mary Oliver, came running up to us. She laid her hands on my shoulders. "I… Well, let's just say that if you want me to, I'll come with you. I can imagine it must be hard to do this alone."

I somehow found the strength to smile at her. "Thank you." I whispered. "Let's go then."

The ride was silent. Mr. Vega didn't say anything, and I didn't ask any questions. I suppose I didn't care enough for the answers. All I cared about was for him to be gone. To get the hell out of our lives. I didn't care how or why that would happen, as long as it did.

…

We were standing next to the body, the bag still closed. I grabbed Mary's hand. This was the moment of truth. "Are you ready?" The brunette women, who was introduced as the coroner, spoke with a soft, kind voice. I nodded, not entirely sure if I was.

She slowly unzipped the bag, and opened it. My stomach cringed as I saw his face. There he was. Tears filled my eyes. I nodded slowly. "It's him." I whispered. "It's really him." My voice got louder. Tears were dripping down my face.

He was gone. He would never hurt us again. We were safe.

We were finally safe.


	34. when life knocks you down

**Chapter 34. **–When life knocks you down

_Just remember, when life knocks you down on your knees, you're in the perfect position to pray. _

_~Author unknown_

**Beck's POV**

I closed my eyes for a second, and then opened them again. I squeezed Jade's hand. Tori and I hadn't spoken a word since Mrs. West had left. I guess neither one of us had anything to say.

Tori was on the other side of the room. Her hands were folded, and her eyes were closed. Her lips were mumbling words that I couldn't understand. Maybe she was praying. Maybe I should do the same. Never before had I showed any interest for the existence of a God.

So, if he did exist, he probably wouldn't see any need for helping me now. I looked at Jade again. Her eyes were still closed. Her face was so pale. The bruises seemed so dark. She'd never been so small before.

"God." I whispered as soft as possible. "God, if… If you're even listening… Please, help her. I know I've never done anything for you. So, I'm not blaming you for not wanting to help me now either. But God, if you can't do it for me, then do it for her.

She deserves a happy life. And, all she's gotten till now is fear. Hurt. She doesn't deserve that God, you must know that. Just… just, please, show her mercy this time." A tear streamed down my cheek.

And just then, I felt a tiny squeeze in my hand. "Jade?" I whispered. Tori looked up immediately. "Jade, please wake up, you can do it!" She moved her head a little bit, and her eyes flew open. "Help me!" she screamed. "Help me! Please help me!" She panicked.

"Tori, go get a doctor!" I shouted. I grabbed Jade's shoulders. "Jade, calm down! Calm down, you're safe!" But she kept screaming for help. "Jade, I'm here, you're safe, you're okay. I'm here. You're safe." I kept repeating.

I wrapped my arms around her. "I was going to die." She cried into my chest. "No you weren't." I told her. "You're here with me, you're safe." Tears were running down her face. "I was so afraid." She whispered through her tears. "I know." I said. "I know you were. But it's all okay now. You're safe."

Finally, Tori came back with a doctor. "I see the young lady has finally woken up." He said. "How are you feeling?" Jade's arms were still attached to me, her eyes filled with fear. "Where am I?" She asked. "The hospital." The doctor answered calmly.

"How did I get here? I was…" She didn't finish her sentence. "We found you." I said. She looked me in the eyes. "How? How is that possible? He was going…" I shook my head. "No. No, we were going to find you. We've been looking the whole time." I assured her.

"I can't believe you actually found me!" Her eyes filled themselves with tears again. "Well, of course we did!" Tori said. "Did you really think we couldn't do that?" She smiled. "Well, Jade, I sure hoped you'd think more of us." And Jade smiled too. It was the prettiest sight I ever saw.

Maybe because I had been so afraid that I'd never see that smile again.

"I just, I can hardly believe I'm alive." She said. The doctor nodded. "Your family was just in time." He said. "You're going to be fine!" She smiled through her tears again. "But, where is my mom?" She asked. "She'll be here soon." I promised. "Real soon."

"But where is she?" she asked. We all kept silent for a moment. Tori and I looked each other in the eyes. "The police may have found your father." Tori said softly. I felt Jade's body stiffen in my arms. "May." She said. "As in… Maybe?" Tori nodded.

Jade buried her face in my chest. I felt her tears dripping through my shirt. I softly rubbed her back. "I just want it all to be over." She mumbled. "It is over." I told her. "You're safe, you're here with us." She tried to shake her head. "No it's not. He'll be back. He'll always be back."

"No he won't. He'll never hurt you again. I won't let him." I promised. I held her frame closer to me. I didn't know what else to say so she would believe me. And I hated the man who had done this to her.

And for the second time in my life, I found myself praying to God for a miracle.


	35. safe

**Chapter 35. **–Safe

_When I'm with you, I feel safe from the things that hurt me inside._

_~Author unknown_

**Jade's POV**

"I'm just, going to tell everybody you're awake. I'll be back soon." Tori said. "Everybody?" I asked in surprise. I knew my mom wasn't here, and Beck was in the room with me. Who was she talking about?

"Yeah." She said. "Cat, André, Robbie, Trina, my parents, Beck's parents…" I was stunned. "They're all here for me?" I asked. "Of course they are!" Beck said. I refused to show the tears that were burning behind my eyeballs. "Well, then bring them in already!" I said.

"Well, I don't want to be a spoiler, but I don't think it's a very good idea to bring everybody in at once. It might be a little too much." The doctor said. I rolled my eyes. "I'm fine." I told him. I didn't feel fine tough. But seriously, couldn't he understand that right now I needed people around me? People who cared for me?

"I'm sorry Jade, but let's stick with two at the time first, huh? Want me to get somebody for you?" He asked. "Yes." I sighed. "Bring in… Cat… and André." I said eventually. Even though I would never admit it, maybe this guy was right –I did feel tired.

"Okay." The doctor smiled. "Now, you can stay here dear." He turned to Tori. "I'll go tell everybody she's awake, and send in Cat and André."

"Okay, is it just me, or is he _really _annoying?" I asked, as soon as the doctor had left the room. Beck and Tori both laughed out loud. "What are you, laughing at me?" I snapped. Tori grabbed my hand. "I'm only laughing because I'm so happy." She said, and I couldn't help but smile at that.

"You just can't imagine how good it is to have you back with us." Beck whispered. I squeezed his hand. "You know, I think I can." I whispered back. "Because it feels even better to be back with you."

Suddenly, I heard squealing down the hallway. I smiled. Who else but Cat would squeal in a hospital? "Now, calm down! You're going to wake the sick people!" André. "She'd wake the dead." I mumbled. Beck grinned.

"Jadey!" Cat screamed, and came running at me. "Wo-wo-wo." Tori stood up and caught her before she could reach me. "Cat, you have to be careful!" she said. "You could hurt Jade!" Cat looked startled at me. André came standing behind her.

"Hey girl." He said softly. "I'm so glad you're okay." He reached over to give me a careful hug. "Well, I'm glad to be okay." I said smiling. "Now, Cat, why is it I still haven't received a hug from you?" I asked the prowling redhead next to my bed.

The smile immediately returned to her face. "Jadey!" She squealed, and threw herself in my arms. I tried to suppress a cry of pain. "Cat, be careful!" Beck said worriedly. "I'm okay." I reassured him. "Jadey, I missed you so much." She whispered. "I was really, really worried!"

"Well it's all okay now. I'm here, it's okay." I shushed her. "I was afraid you'd never come back!" She cried. "I know Cat. I know. But it's all okay now. I'm here." I promised.

"And I'm not going anywhere."


	36. where we're going

**Chapter 36.** –Where we're going.

_Scars remind us where we've been. They don't have to dictate where we're going. _

_~David Rossi_

**Liza's POV**

When I saw Holly waiting for us at the main entrance of the hospital, I was immediately worried. I rushed myself towards her. "Liza!" She yelled from far. "Liza, she's awake! She's awake!" I couldn't believe my ears.

"She's, she's awake?" I stammered through my tears. Holly wrapped her arms around my shoulders. "She's awake, Liza, she's fine!" I tried to wipe my tears away. "O dear God." I cried. I loosened myself from her hug.

"I ought to go see her." I said. "I'm going to…" Holly nodded in understanding. "Of course. You go to her, right away." I rushed myself through the hallways, to my daughter's room. I stumbled through the door.

"Jade!" She looked up, and our eyes met. There she was. My little girl was okay. "O my God, Jade." I cried as I walked to her. Tears streamed down both our faces as we embraced each other. For a few minutes neither one of us spoke.

All I needed was to feel my little girl in my arms. To hold her, to know she was there. "Mom, mom, you're hurting me." She suddenly spoke through her tears. "O, no, are you okay, is it bad, do I need to get you a doctor?" I rambled worriedly.

She smiled. "No mom, I'm okay. Really." I laid my hands on her cheeks, wiping away a tear with my thumb. "O, sweetie." I said softly. "Mom." Jade whispered. "Mom, I want to know where he is. Did they get him?" Her eyes filled themselves with tears again. "He's gone." I whispered. "He's dead. We're safe now. He's gone."

I had seen the look that then filled her eyes only once before. It was some sort of mixture between sadness and relief.

_Flashback _

_Suddenly we heard the front door closing with loud bang. I stood up, and left the room, with Jade close behind. "Mom! What are you going to do?" I wrapped my arms around her. "I won't let him hurt you ever again. I promise." I said. "Now, how would you like to stay with granny for a while, huh?" _

_"__Will you go with me then?" She asked. "I will. Now, let's go pack, okay? Take everything you need, don't leave anything behind." I stood up to grab our suitcases. "Won't we come back here mommy? I mean, not ever?" I turned around to look into the eyes of my daughter. "I don't think so honey." I whispered. _

_End flashback_

I pulled my little girl closer to me, careful not to cause her anymore pain. "It's all over now honey. We're safe. You're going to be fine. It's okay now." I whispered. And it was okay now. Everything was going to go all right from now on. We were going to be happy.

He would never hurt my baby again.


	37. what a mess

**Chapter 37. **–What a mess

_Someone who really loves you, sees what a mess you can be, how moody you can get, how hard you are to handle. But still wants you in their life. _

_~Author unknown_

**Jade's POV**

The door shrieked softly as it was opened carefully. "You don't have to be quiet. I'm awake." I said. "Yay, Jadey!" Cat squealed as she jumped on my bed. She gave me a small hug, careful not to hurt me. She did anyway, but I didn't care.

"You know, you should be sleeping." Beck turned on the light. "You know, you should've brought me coffee. Now we're both unhappy." He smiled. "Jade, I brought you a present!" Cat said a little too loud.

I must've squeezed my eyes shut, because Beck noticed my upcoming headache. "Cat, you really need to calm down a little bit. Jade's got a headache, remember?" He said. Cat nodded. "O yeah. I forgot." She whispered.

"Jade, look!" She took a big, shiny, pink pile of wrapping paper out of her bag. "Here Jadey, you open it!" Beck smiled at my face, but Cat didn't seem to notice. "Thanks." I mumbled. I took the wrapping paper of, and pulled out a fluffy, black giraffe.

Cat squealed. "Look! He's the same as Mr. Longneck and Mr. Purple, only this one's black, because it's your favorite color! It's to keep you company when we're not around." She declared. "Aw, Cat! That's so sweet of you! Thank you. Really." I hugged her again.

No idea what I'd do with a stuffed animal this size, but still, the gesture was adorable. "He's really cute Jade! What are you going to name him?" Beck asked with a demon smile. Cat gasped. "Yeah Jade! What are you going to name him?"

I glared at Beck. "Do I have to name him?" I sighed. "Yes, of course!" Cat looked almost insulted. "Okay, okay." I said. "Well, how about… Mr. Coffee, yeah. Mr. Coffee would do just fine, since I still don't have a cup of it right now!"

"Well I can't help it!" Cat prowled. "I wanted to bring you a cup, but Beck and your mom told me not to! They said it'd keep you from sleeping well." I turned to Beck. "O did they?" Cat nodded. "Well, Beck. Why don't you go down now then, and tell my mom that I am awake now, and _very _cranky, and if she wants to change that, then _somebody_ had better get me some coffee!"

Beck laughed. He leaned over to kiss my temple. And even though I still hadn't had my coffee, I let him. "I'm glad you're your old self again." He whispered. "I love you." His lips said. I smiled.

"I love you too." Said mine.


	38. thanks

**Chapter 38. **–Thanks

_I can no other answer make then thanks, thanks, and ever thanks._

_~William Shakespeare_

**Tori's POV**

The doorbell made a shrill noise when I pressed it. Within seconds Mrs. West opened the door. "Well hi, Tori, I didn't expect you this early!" She smiled. "No, I know, my teacher went home sick, so I was two hours early." I said nervously.

"So, Beck's going to come by later, but I thought maybe I could come in already?" Mrs. West knitted her brows. "Well… I don't know… she really does need her sleep…" She said apologizing. "O, if she's asleep, I promise I won't wake her!" I said.

Mrs. West frowned. "Well, okay, but if she's asleep you have to come right back! I'm already having so much trouble making her go to sleep!" she chuckled. I smiled. I could only imagine that. "Thanks Mrs. West." I said.

I sneaked up the stairs, to her room. I carefully opened the door, but it made a shrieking sound. I bit my tongue. Shit. "Come on in." I heard Jade voice on the other side of the door. "I'm awake, turn on the light." I opened the door a little further, and hit the light-button.

"Hey Jade! I hope I didn't wake you." She rolled her eyes. "I wasn't asleep Vega. Most the time, I'm just laying her, awake, being bored all day." She told me. "Well, the doctors did say you needed to be on at least another week of bed rest." I said.

"I know." She growled. "But this is day three of that week, and I'm already very, very done with it." She looked behind me. "Didn't Beck come with you?" There was a little disappointment in her voice. "No, he'll come by later today. I was done early, it's not even two o'clock yet." I told her.

"It's that early?" Jade asked. "Seriously, I have no amount of time in this room." She complained. "Don't you have a phone?" I asked smiling. "Well, yes, but…" She sighed. "I don't mean I don't have a clock or anything, I just mean… well… there's like no difference in day or night in here! And I'm very, very bored, Vega!"

"Well don't be mad at me, I'm here to keep you company!" I laughed. She sighed, but smiled. "You're right. Thanks for that, I guess." She said. She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, but opened them immediately.

"How are things at school?" She asked. "Good." I said. "I mean, we all miss you of course." I laughed. She rolled her eyes, but did smile at the compliment I gave her. "Sikowitch just had an argument with one of Cat's giraffes this morning –he was convinced it stole his coconuts." I laughed.

Jade laughed too. "Did Beck tell you she bought me one too?" She asked. "No!" I said. "You're serious!" She nodded. "Yep." She reached behind her. "Look. This is Mr. Coffee." She said as serious as possible. We both burst out in laughter.

After a little while, Jade squeezed her eyes again, and rubbed her brow. "Hey, are you okay?" I asked. She quickly opened her eyes. "Yeah, I'm fine." She said. "Well, sorry to say Jade, but you don't look fine. You look tired." I said.

She sighed. "Well, maybe a little." She admitted. "Maybe you should just go to sleep for a little while." I said. She looked down. "Maybe I should." She said softly. I stood up to turn out the light. "Tori?" She asked. I turned around. "Yeah?"

"Will you stay?" She looked a little embarrassed. I smiled. "Of course." I shut the door, and went to sit next to her. I wrapped my arms around her, and she crawled onto my frame. "Tori?" She whispered.

"Thanks, I guess."


	39. the terror of he who falls asleep

**Chapter 39. **–The terror of he who falls asleep

_Do you know the terror of he who falls asleep? To the very toe he is terrified. Cause the ground gives way under him, and the dream begins…_

_~Friedrich Nietzsche _

**Jade's POV**

_"__Mom?" __I yelled. "Mom!" My voice echoed through the big, empty house. I hated the big house. It carried nothing but bad memories. I fell down, and pulled my knees up to my chest. Everything was dark around me. _

_Suddenly he was there. I tried to get away, but I couldn't move. It was like I couldn't do anything to stop him. I never could. "You're going to die." He laughed. "You're going to die." Tears fell down my face. "Where's my mom?" I yelled. He laughed. "She can't save you! No one can! Nobody can help you now!" _

_I cried with all of my strength, but he just kept laughing. "Nobody can help you! No one can!"_

"Jade wake up!" Somebody shook me up. "No!" I cried. "No, please!" I tried to push him away from me. "Jade, it's me! It's Tori! Wake up!" Someone shouted. I looked into her eyes. "Tori." I whispered. "Yes." She sighed. "It's me, it's okay. You're safe."

Relieved tears streamed down my cheeks, as I buried my face in Tori's chest. The door flung open. "Jade! What's going on?" My mom asked worriedly. "It's okay Mrs. West." Tori said.

"It was just a nightmare."


	40. I won life

**Chapter 40. **–I won life

_Think. In a minute from now you could be saying, I risked death, I threw for life, and I won life. It's a very wonderful feeling. To have survived. _

_~John Fowles_

**Beck's POV**

How beautiful she was when she was asleep. I could just look at her forever. Her dark hair was framing her porcelain skin. A small strand of it was touching her beautiful ruby lips, who were just begging me to kiss them.

I just couldn't get over how beautiful she was.

She slowly opened her eyes, and stared into mine. "Good morning sleeping beauty." I whispered. She smiled. "How long have you been here?" I shrugged my shoulders. "A while."

"Where's Tori?" She asked. "She left a little while after I got here. You were sleeping." I said. "What time is it then?" She asked. I checked my phone. "Almost seven." I told her. She gasped. "But when did you get here then?"

I shrugged my shoulders again. "Somewhere around four." She shook her head. "Why would you just wait here for me to wake up, for three hours?" She asked. I smiled. "Because it was worth it. Besides, I didn't mind." I said.

"Why, aren't you glad to see me?" I teased her. She smiled. "Of course I am!" She said. "Just, hate that you've been waiting all that time." I shook my head. "I promise you, I really don't mind." I told her.

"Now, how are you?" I asked. "I'm good." She said. "Really? Slept well?" She shrugged. "Yeah, pretty good." I looked into her eyes. "No nightmares?" I asked carefully. She rolled her eyes, but I saw she was hiding her tears.

"O my God, who told you, Tori or my mom?" She asked. "Jade, there's nothing wrong with having nightmares, especially after what you've been through!" I said. "Well, they shouldn't have told you anyway." She said bitterly.

"Please talk to me about it." I said. She looked at me in disbelief. "What? No. No, I don't want to talk about it." A tear escaped her eye. I softly wiped it away, but new tears filled her eyes. I took her in my arms, and she cried softly into my chest.

"I just want to forget about him." She whispered. "I know." I said. "But you can't do that all at once. You can't just erase the memories. But if you share the burden, it gets lighter. It makes that you're safe. He lost."

"But that's just it!" She cried. "What? What's just it?" I asked. "Please baby, tell me." I said softly. "He died thinking he won." She whispered so soft, I could hardly hear.

And it was true. When we found out he was dead, all I could think of was that he was gone. He couldn't hurt her no more. I thought that was enough. She was still alive, she was safe, that was all that mattered.

How wrong had I been.

I took her face in my hands. In her eyes, there was nothing but fear. And suddenly, I knew. "Get dressed." I said. "What?" she sobbed. "Just, some pants and a jacket." I said. "We have to go." She looked confused. "Why? Where?"

"I'll tell you later, first get dressed. Come on, I'll get you some pants…" I started looking in her closet. There. "Here, I got some jeans, put them on." She pulled the covers off, and slowly went to sit on the side of her bed. I handed her the jeans.

She started to put them on, while I started to search for some shoes. "Here, I got you some boots." I said. "Maybe you can find me some socks, too?" She said. Her eyes were still teary, but her voice was pretty much normal again.

I handed her some socks, too. She pulled them on. "Beck, where are you taking me? I want to know, or I'm not going." I looked into her eyes. "To your father's grave." I said. "Jade, you need to tell him you're alive! You need to tell him that you won."

Her eyes filled themselves with tears again. "Beck, I…" She started. "Look. It's your choice. If you don't want to go, then we'll stay here. But, I, I think it'll help you." I whispered.

Maybe I was making a mistake. After all, she was still on bed rest. And maybe this kind of confrontation would only make things worse. But I had this strange feeling that this was exactly what she needed.

"Okay." She whispered.

I helped her downstairs, and we walked in to the living room, to find a very stunned looking Mrs. West. "Beck, Jade, what is this? You're supposed to be in bed!" She said. "I know, but there's something we have to do." I said.

Mrs. West looked at me suspicious. "Please trust me. I really think…" She cut me off. "Beck, where are you taking my daughter? She's on bed rest!"

"Mom, we're… we're going to his grave." Jade suddenly said. Mrs. West looked at her in disbelief. "Mom, I just… need to tell him I'm alive. He'll never know that, but… I still have to go. I ought to say out loud that I won this."

Mrs. West seemed to overthink things for a moment. "Okay." She then whispered. "Okay, if you need to do that, then… then we'll go." I helped Jade get into her jacket, while Mrs. West quickly grabbed her shoes and coat. Jade squeezed my hand as we were walking out the door.


	41. in life

**Chapter 41. **–In life

_In a game, just losing is almost as satisfying as just winning… In life, the loser's score is always zero. _

_~W. H. Auden_

**Jade's POV**

It was cold at the cemetery. Beck gave me his jacket as we we're walking by the graves. "It's right over there." My mom broke the silence. I nodded. "I'm going alone from here." I said. "Are you sure?" My mom whispered. "I am." I said.

I walked further to the place my mom pointed out. I stopped by a small gravestone. 'Ronald B. Scott.' Was all it said. Ronald B. Scott. Date of birth-Date of death.

On the other gravestones stood things like; dearest father, loving husband, missed by so many people. His didn't say anything. His didn't deserve that.

I crushed the little crocuses that were growing next to his grave. He didn't even deserve them. "Well, here I am, dad." I whispered. "Bet you didn't expect that, did you?" I bit my lip. "Bet you didn't see that coming. Bet you thought I was dead."

"But I'm not!" I suddenly screamed. "I'm not dead! I'm alive! You didn't kill me!" Hot tears were streaming down my cheeks. "And now you're dead! You're dead, but I'm not! I survived!" I fell down on my knees. "I did. I survived." I whispered.

"You lost, dad. I hate that you'll never know that, but you did. You lost." I wiped away the tears. "And I won."


	42. love

**Chapter 42.** –Love

_Love is love's reward. _

_~John Dryden_

**Liza's POV**

"I'm going after her now." I whispered after we gave Jade a few minutes alone. Beck nodded. We got up, and walked to the grave. Jade was sitting on her knees, her cheeks soaked in tears. I sat down next to her, and wrapped my arms around her.

"It's not fair, mom." She whispered. "I know it's not, honey. Life's never fair." I sighed. She lay her head on my shoulder. "Sometimes, bad things happen to good people." I paused a few seconds. "Good people like us." I whispered.

I gently wiped a tear of her face. "And in the end, not even all good people survive. Because life isn't like that, life isn't fair. Life doesn't reward you for being strong, for being good."

I took a deep breath. "But you know what? Love does. Love is the only reward we get in this life. Your father never did get that reward. Because he never deserved that. But you do. You're a beautiful, amazing girl, and that's why there are so many people who love you."

"I love you so much." I whispered. She looked me in the eyes. "I love you too mom." She whispered. "I love you too." I pulled her in a hug. "I know my dear." I said.

"And that's why we'll always be happy. Got it? We'll always be happy, because there'll always be a reason to be. There'll always be a reason to go on. To keep strong, and forget the past, forget the scars."

"We got each other, baby. And that's why we'll always be happy."


	43. I survived

**Chapter 43. **–I survived

_From every wound there is a scar, and every scar tells a story. A story that says, I survived._

_~Craig Scott_

**Jade's POV**

That night I found myself wide awake, peacefully listening to Beck's steady breathing. His arms felt safely, wrapped around me.

I looked down at my wrist. There was a big scar drawn all over it. It looked so ugly. There was another one, right above my left eyebrow. The other bruises were hardly visible by now, but my doctor said these two might never fade completely.

Just another thing he had marked my life with.

"Hey, are you awake?" Beck suddenly whispered. "Yeah, I am." I said. "Did you… have any nightmares again?" he asked carefully. I smiled. "No. I haven't had any." I was glad I was finally able to say that again.

"So, you're feeling better?" he asked. "Yes." I said slowly. Yes, I did feel better. I did feel… happy. "You know I love you so much." He whispered. I couldn't help but smile. "Love you more." I whispered.

"Not possible." He said. We both laughed. Not because it was funny. But because it was true. And because we were happy.

I guess some scars never fade. But maybe I shouldn't see them as ugly no more. Maybe, I should see them as battle scars. Maybe I should wear them with proud. Because they're proof, not of what he did to me, but of me surviving that.

Of me being strong.

But from now on, my past isn't important anymore. It doesn't have to be, really. Not if you have so many wonderful people who want to be a part of your future.


	44. family

**Chapter 44. **–Family

_Real friends treat you like family. _

_~Jesse Joseph_

**Steven's POV**

Most kids in my class have four grandparents. Two grandmothers, and two grandfathers. I don't. I only have two grandmas. Of course there were two grandfathers too, I just never knew either one of them.

I was named after one of my granddad's tough. My dad's dad. That's because he was loved very much, and everybody misses him a lot.

I once asked why I wasn't named after the other one too. My mom said that's because he didn't deserve to be remembered.

One of the first things I ever learned, was that family doesn't have to be blood. Like, we have a very big family, but only a few people are actually related to us. Dad says that those people have proven to be true friends, during hard times.

And true friends, are family.

**The end! So, that was it. My very first fanfic. What did you think? Good? Bad? Did you get the ending? **

**Anyway, I enjoyed writing this very much, so this definitely won't be my last story. **

**Thanks for reading/reviewing! **


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